March 30, 1943 - November 6, 2020
David was born in Rochdale, England. However, he went to boarding school in the north of Scotland and always claimed it was there he first felt the pull of northern latitudes.
David soon immigrated to Canada and worked briefly in Cassiar, before moving on to Dawson City. There he was hired as a deckhand on No.6 dredge, working for Yukon Consolidated Gold Corporation (YCGC). This was 1966. Canada's North had found a place in his heart.
In 1972 David returned to the Yukon, now with his wife, Eva, whom he had met in Sweden while working as a DJ. Together they started an adventure tour company in Dawson City.
Moving south to Whitehorse a few years later, they opened a travel agency to complement their inbound tour company. In 1991 David saw an opportunity to grow the business by expanding into Alaska where direct charter flights from Europe were arriving into Anchorage.
He was in his element; promoting and selling the Yukon and Alaska to tour companies all over the world. All Alaska Tours became well known and respected in the tourism industry. David and Eva sold the business to their partner and retired in 2013.
Ten years earlier they had left Whitehorse and moved to Roberts Creek on the Sunshine Coast. They returned every summer to spend time at their cabin in Atlin. Having a toehold in the north was very important to David.
David was an energetic man, to say the least, with many interests outside of work. He loved hiking, flying his Cessna and marathon running.
He started the Dome Race in Dawson City and was later involved in getting the Skagway-Whitehorse Road Relay off the ground. And of course, he loved travelling the world with Eva.
Train travel was his favourite, whether in South America, India or crossing Siberia. After moving to Roberts Creek, he could be seen kayaking out on the ocean or on his road bike training for the next race.
David was funny and quick to laugh with a quirky sense of humor.
He was a raconteur and wonderful storyteller with a range of accents that bewildered and delighted. He loved an appreciative audience.
Dementia took David from us far too soon and he is very much missed by his Eva, his brother Rob and partner Tor, and by nieces and nephews.
David collected an amazingly diverse and wonderful network of friends, no matter where he went. He will be missed far and wide.
Gatherings to celebrate a life well lived, will be held in Roberts Creek and Atlin sometime next summer.