Larry G. David, 85

Larry G. David, 85, passed away on Feb. 16, 2021, in Thousand Oaks, California.

Larry grew up in Kalispell, the son of Bernard and Edna David, where he was a member of DeMolay, active in the youth group at Bethlehem Lutheran Church and a member of the VFW shooting team while attending school and working in his father’s Conoco station. He graduated from Flathead County High School in 1955.

His achievement as a nationally ranked junior rifleman led to college scholarships. He attended St. Olaf College for a year, then transferred to the University of Montana (Missoula) where he joined the Sigma Nu fraternity and competed with the Air Force ROTC rifle team. He graduated UM in 1958 then began military service as an Air Force officer, marrying his college sweetheart, Anne Louise Thomas of Butte, before shipping out for a tour of duty in Korea. Upon his return, he was stationed at McGuire Air Force Base in New Jersey where he trained as a computer programmer for the new NYADS SAGE computer network (developed to better protect U.S. air space) long before the public knew about computers. That early training led to a 30-plus year career as a government subcontractor in the defense industry. His work brought the David family to California in 1968 where they made their home in Thousand Oaks, always returning to Whitefish and Butte for summer vacations until Anne could no longer travel due to Alzheimer’s disease.

Larry fulfilled his childhood dream of becoming a pilot by earning his private pilot license and eventually building and flying his own experimental aircraft. He also enjoyed sharing his “fix it” talents with Ascension Lutheran Church, Habitat for Humanity, and his many friends.

Larry is survived by daughters, Brenda Lincoln (Warren) of Los Angeles and Kelly Frangos (Zach) of Moorpark, California, grandchildren Teresa, Leanna, Nic and Tim, his sister, Shirlie Plummer Joseph of Seattle, as well as nephews, a niece, and cousins. His beloved “Annie” predeceased him in 2018.

A memorial service will be held at Ascension Lutheran Church in Thousand Oaks on May 30 at 2 p.m. The service also will be broadcast virtually at: https://alcto.org/ascension-lutheran-church-livestream/