Tuesday, May 08, 2012

Celebration of a Life Lived Well




The following submission was sent to me by Rod Hard and Ian McLean:


A little over a week after dictating to his "beautiful wife Elissa" what was to become his farewell message to his many friends and acquaintances, Dubbo Dave (or any of a variety of names, including Dave's personal favourite: Desperate Dave from Dubbo), our great mate shuffled off this mortal coil at 2:30 a.m. on 29 April.

He was so happy that he made it to their 40th Wedding Anniversary the previous weekend, and that - in his last few days bravely battling cancer - he was able to go out in a wheelchair to see his 6-yr-old grandson play soccer and "produce a Lionel Messi display, kicking 5 goals."

Although in considerable discomfort, Dave discussed with his family how he would like his funeral service to be conducted. When asked how many people they should expect, Dave guessed there would be "about 30."

Was he ever off the mark! Add another 200 or so to that and you have the turnout at ‘The Celebration of Davo’s Life’ held at the Uniting Church in Berowra Heights at Noon on Wednesday 2 May.

Dave and Elissa's sons, Jack and Pete, were there for support, and both spoke eloquently, with emotion, at the rather unusual funeral which featured - at Dave's request - his beloved Hornsby BUGS Ukulele Group playing his favourites: Midnight Special, Ghost Riders in the Sky, and Lights on the Hill.

Among the huge crowd at Berowra were old friends Bob Davis, Rod Hard, Keith Jackson and Ian McLean representing the many Asopians who flooded Elissa's e-mail in-tray with condolences and messages of support: Margaret Dwyer in Perth, Bill & Diane Bohlen in Los Angeles, Mick Wilson in Melbourne, Dick Jones in Bendigo, Henry Bodman and Col Huggins in Brisbane, Howard Ralph in Sydney  ... the list goes on and on.

As Howard noted in his message: "His infectious smile was memorable!" Dick recalled "very fond memories of Dave going right back to the ASOPA days and the flat in Spit Junction, shared in 1963, and then on to Rabaul in the mid-60s."

In later years, the Kesby brand of hospitality was common for Asopians visiting Sydney who would find themselves receiving an invitation to one of Dave's legendary barbecues on the deck of their Berowra Heights home overlooking the valley and trees below. He even staged an impromptu mini-reunion in late 2002 when he learned that the Booths, Jacksons, Jones's and McLeans would all be in town at the same time.

As Keith and Dick noted in an e-mail following Dave's passing: "We marvelled at Dave's bubbly spirit, not to mention his courage in the face of his illness."

Dave's last words in his final message to his many mates are typical of his selflessness: "Thanks for all the good wishes and prayers you have sent to me. I don’t know what’s going to happen next but..."


Thanks for the submission, Rod and Ian,
Bill Bohlen, Los Angeles

1 comment:

  1. Beautifully expressed by the authors, and wonderful to be shown to all viewers, by Bill Bohlen, now enjoying the delights of a new born grandson from LA.
    Yes, "Dubbo Dave" was a great mate, one of the very best. He will be sadly missed by all his class mates of 62/63.
    Well done Bill of "caramel latte" fame, these days!
    Colin

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