Our hearts remain heavy this week here at the Delta Optimist.
Our beloved colleague and friend Dave Hamilton lost his courageous battle with cancer last week at the all too young age of 64.
Dave was diagnosed with stage four prostate cancer in February 2016. He soldiered on undaunted, going through treatments always with a smile on his face, while continuing his role as Optimist General Manager and his many volunteer and charitable efforts in our community.
To say Dave had a zest for life would be an understatement. He gave everything to his family, friends, this newspaper and especially this community.
I really started to interact with Dave and get to know him better when I joined the Optimist family in the summer of 2016, when a two-month maternity leave reporter position became a full-time reporter position and ultimately led me to taking over as editor when Ted Murphy left last year.
I was immediately welcomed with open arms by Dave. He appreciated my work from the start, my commitment to the craft and my willingness to get involved in this community. We also bonded over our love of sports – especially baseball and our beloved New York Yankees. How I will miss going downstairs to his office and chat about a starting line-up or a recap of the previous day’s Yankees’ victory.
When Dave was diagnosed with cancer, we all witnessed his strength, his positive attitude, his laugh and his smile. He never complained. He remained optimistic that he would beat it, but sadly that was not the case.
I’m proud to have known you Dave and to have had the chance to get to know you better these past few years.
Heaven has just received a beacon of light – a light that will give us strength as we continue on.
From our Optimist family and the whole Delta community who knew and loved you Dave, God speed and rest in peace. We will miss you Dave.
