David Allen "Dave" White passed away peacefully on December, 16 2020. Born on September 18, 1934 in Newell, WV, the only child of Clarence White and Mildred Allison, Dave had an adventurous spirit and a natural gift for storytelling. He awed his grandchildren with tales of a childhood game that involved hitting sticks of dynamite in the garage with a baseball bat, being too skinny to ring the bell in church without getting lifted into the air, and surviving an icy swim across the Ohio River with his best friend in fourth grade. He was also a member of the basketball team at Wells High School, winning the 1951-1952 state championship.

Despite all the prestige of being a hometown hero, Dave left Newell for WVU where he met the love of his life and in his words, "one hot tamale," Marguerite Mullins, in Spanish class. They married on January 29, 1955 at her parents' home in Dille, WV during a blizzard, before moving back to a one-room apartment near campus with no hot water. Dave was proud of how quickly he could get a pot of hot water down the hall to ensure Marg could have a warm bath.

Always proud of his humble roots, Dave became the first member of his family to graduate from college. He worked his way through school with a variety of jobs, including at Homer Laughlin Pottery, the local steel mill, and as a member of the US Army ROTC. He continued his tradition of service for many years and was honorably discharged as a Captain from the Army in 1969.

After leaving WVU, Dave moved to Madison, OH to work in public education, eventually leading the 'West Virginia mafia' of college friends who all came to teach in northeast Ohio. Over the years he served various roles, including as a high school history teacher, football coach, middle school principal and guidance counselor. Every summer, he loved to travel with his family, trekking his children to every Civil War battlefield within reach and making ill-advised trips up Pilot Mountain in an RV, brakes smoking all the way down.

He loved taking his family to the Carolina beaches, especially Lake Arrowhead in Myrtle Beach, SC and Sunset Beach, NC. It was here he discovered the second and third loves of his life: Calabash-style seafood and Krispy Kreme doughnuts. He would enforce a strict 4:00 pm early bird policy for dinners at Beck's for many years to come, nearly always followed by a chocolate-iced, Kreme-filled doughnut.

Dave was known for being secretly a little raucous. Stories abound, ranging from him getting dropped off at the end of the street after a rousing 18 holes of golf and a night with the other teachers to having a free hand pouring the Harvey Wallbangers at Christmas. Strong but stubborn, Dave taught us all about the value of knowing your history and made sure we always knew how proud he was of his children and grandchildren. He gave great hugs, taught us a lifetime of lessons about family, and never ate a single vegetable in his entire life.

Dave is survived by his three children, Kimberly (Greg) Voss, Lisa, and Allen (Laura); brother-in-law David Groves; grandchildren Ashley, Nicholas (Caitlin), Trevor, Graham and Gabriel; nieces Julie (Michael) Long and Sandy Groves; nephew Michael (Joy) Groves; seven grand-nieces & nephews; and numerous friends, including Eloise (Ken) Heichel. He was preceded by his beloved wife, Marg and his parents.

A service will be held at 11:00 am on Tuesday, Dec. 22 at Montlawn Memorial Park, Raleigh, NC. Gifts in his memory may be made to the Madison Public Library, c/o Dee Culbertson, 6111 Middle Ridge Rd, Madison, Ohio 44057 or to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society at donate.lls.org .