|
David Weiss
David Robert Weiss died March 3, 2009.
He was born Dec. 15, 1965, in Portland, Ore.
He graduated from Lincoln High School in
Portland, and went on to earn a degree in biology and
environmental education at Evergreen State College in Olympia,
Wash.
Following graduation, he was employed by
the Army Corps of Engineers at Bonneville Dam as a park ranger,
leading tours and giving talks, all related to the history and
ecology of the area around the dam and beyond in the Columbia
River Gorge. This was his special place in the world and he
loved exploring it and encouraging others to do the same.
David had a couple of interim positions
at the Columbia Gorge Discovery Center in The Dalles and the Bay
Project in San Francisco, and then returned to Bonneville, where
he continued to expand interpretive and outreach programs. In
2007 he was honored with the Army Corps of Engineers National
Interpreter of the Year award.
David developed his love of the outdoors
through many family hiking, camping, back-packing, skiing and
mountain-climbing trips. He dearly loved spending time at the
family cabin on Mount Hood, near Parkdale, where he attended the
Parkdale Elementary School for his sixth-grade year.
He was passionate about sharing his
knowledge and enthusiasm for the biology, ecology and history of
the Gorge through his volunteer work with the Columbia Gorge
Ecology Institute, especially with their SECRETS youth education
program. He was on the board of the institute, where he served
as vice president.
Leading Elderhostel and ROADS Scholar
tours was another aspect of his joy of teaching. David, aka “Whipsnake”
or “Ranger Dave, Idol of Northwest Youth” — a title he gave
himself — took great pleasure in playing marimba (Zimbabwe
style) and performing with the Hood River Community Theater.
He will be deeply missed by his parents,
Robert and Joanne Weiss; his sisters, Barbara Weiss and Carol
Capurso; his niece, Rebecca, and nephew, Nicholas Capurso; and
countless friends and colleagues.
A memorial gathering will be held
Saturday, March 28, at 1:30 p.m. in the auditorium at Bonneville
Dam. Gifts in his memory may be made to the Columbia Gorge
Ecology Institute, P.O. Box 1104, Hood River, OR 97031. (Visit
www.gorgeecology.org
to see a tribute to David, with photos.)
|
