I don’t write well enough to describe what David has meant to me. He was my doctoral advisor during my years at UC Berkeley. What makes David so special is the professionalism and humanity he brings to his teaching and mentoring. I strive to be like him in work and life.
One memory that stands out is when he finally took a sabbatical, and yet was still meeting with those of us who were finishing our research. He and Mary Alyce took a trip to Egypt, which just happened to coincide with the Arab Spring. Nervous for them, I sent him a text. They were safely on their boat in the Nile, where the biggest concern was that the ship was running out of white wine. At our next research meeting, each of the students brought him a bottle of white wine!
After graduation I knit David a sweater in thanks. Poor guy, the pattern was so complicated he had to wait over a year to get it! (And then I swore off complicated sweaters!)
David has meant so much to so many people, and deserves to be celebrated! I’m honored to be a part of it.