David Hess

David Hess passed from this life to his next one in heaven on Nov 17th,2010.

David was born December 31, 1927 in Seattle. Grew up in Bremerton, on Oyster Bay in the Puget Sound with his mother, Ethel Virginia Miewald Hess, father, Solomon Hess, and old sister Mary. His father, died when Dad was 11. His Mother supported the family by running a small men's clothing store in downtown Bremerton.

David attended the private, boys only, Lakeside High School. He graduated from University of Washington, then served as a U.S, Army staff sergeant and section leader with the 8th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Cavalry Division in occupied Japan between WWII, and the Korean War. His exposure to machine gun fire ultimately lead to the development of profound deafness in the latter stages of his life.

When he returned home, he married Donna Boyd, and had two children, Kathleen and Craig. He obtained his masters degree in English at Linfield Baptist College in McMinnville, Oregon. He then attended a summer class at Stanford University while he considered a career in television production. However at that time television was just beginning and did not pay very well. Since he had a wife and two small children, he decided to take the Junior Staff Analyst exam for the State of California. He went to work for the State Personnel Board which led to a well respected career in personnel administration. Kathy recalls attending a dinner party several years after her father retired. One of the guests, a young administrator, told her that Dave Hess and two of his colleagues were nicknamed the "personnel gods", by younger analysts in the 1970's.
Dave was an avid small boat builder and outdoor enthusiast. He built four wooden sailboats in his small garage, ranging from an 8 foot dinghy to a 26 foot Trimaran with pontoons that folded under the main hull for land transport. These were the days when all hammering was manual. His forearms were so large his children teased him about being Popeye. He was very active in the Folsom Lake Yacht Club, serving as commodore several times, often winning races and at regattas. He also designed the club pennant. http://www.flyc.org/. David successfully sailed to Hawaii and back, using a sextant and navigating by the stars.

David attended the First Presbyterian Sunday School of Bremerton Washington, with his family presenting a Bible to him on Sept. 26, 1937. He was recognized as being a very honest, good and practical man throughout his life, completing life’s journey in his last year by placing his faith in Christ.
His first marriage ended in divorce. Later he married Jean Siegel. They continued the sailing tradition making the trans Pacific journey to Hawaii together. After nine years in his second marriage, Dave was widowed when Jean was killed in a hit and run car accident.

Two years later Dave was introduced to Ora Brim by Dave's first cousin Betty Dah. David and Ora Brim were married on March 3, 1985, living in the Sacramento area, and then moved to the Harbor, Oregon current residence 18 years ago. They celebrated their 25 wedding anniversary this year.

David is survived by his wife Ora, two children, Kathleen and Craig, 4 step children, 15 grand children and one great grandchild, as well as one sister, Mary Noel currently living in Las Cruces New Mexico.

A memorial service will be held for David Hess at on Monday, December 6th at 2pm, at the Brookings Presbyterian Church, 540 Pacific Avenue, Box 697, Brookings, OR 97415.