David G. Marquardt, 68, 806 Spruce St., Kulpmont, departed for the great hootenanny in the sky on Dec. 12, 2023, following an extended illness.

He was born Sept. 23, 1955, to Margaret and William Marquardt and spent his childhood in Girardville, Pa. On December 21, 1974, he married his adored wife Debra Ann Grimmer, whom he met while putting a new roof on a church in Gowen City. Together they shared a life of 49 years raising three children and navigating the sometimes choppy but often beautiful waters of life.

For 18 years, Dave followed the family tradition as a coal miner in Schuylkill County. Although he was proud of his work as a miner and welder, his real passions were carpentry and music. He worked jobs doing all three as his children grew and his wife attended nursing school. Upon Deb becoming established as a registered nurse, Dave left the mines behind to open his own contracting business. His work involved the installation of 127 kitchens and countless bathrooms. He was truly gifted as a woodworker and never met an engineering issue he couldn't solve. Despite health problems forcing him to retire some years back and a cancer diagnosis nearly four years ago, he was building things and directing home projects until the very end.

As a boy, Dave learned how to master the accordion, a pastime he later admitted he despised. But he did love music and, as an adult, taught himself how to play piano by ear at the VFW in Kulpmont, returning home late nights with Costas York Club Sandwiches for his kids. While he never learned how to read music, he could play many instruments. In the 1980s, he was the keyboardist in the bands Flashback and CPR. He passed on his love of music and talent to his children and grandchildren and was never prouder than when he was sitting around the fire playing and singing with them.

Dave had many hobbies, including building and flying model airplanes, fishing, and boating, scuba diving, fixing classic cars, earning his pilot's license and riding motorcycles. Although he was sometimes a reluctant traveler, his love of adventure often got the better of him. He enjoyed fishing on the beach at Sandbridge, angling for salmon on Lake Ontario and a bucket list trip to Italy. In 2020, he and Deb purchased a lakefront home in Canadice, NY, and fell in love with Honeoye Lake and friends there who have become family.

It was often difficult for him to tell people how he felt, but rest assured, friends and family were everything to him. He always felt better surrounded by people he loved in spaces he created. Ultimately, it was simple things that inspired him the most, like Christmas Eve family chaos, a delicious meal, junk food (Tastycakes) and a grand gesture.

Dave leaves behind his loving wife and three children and their spouses, Bill (Carrie) Marquardt, Ashland; Joanne (Dave) Troutman, Mifflinburg; and Becky (Steve) Rice, Troy. He will also be greatly missed by his seven  grandchildren, Zach,  Max, Sydney, Jake, Eli, Cole and Laila and his sisters Debra (Jake) Zak and Marjorie Lally and her partner Mike.

Funeral Service will be held on Saturday, December 16, 2023, at 1 p.m. with Father Andrew Stahmer as celebrant in the C. J. Lucas Funeral Home Inc., 1053 Chestnut St., Kulpmont. Viewing will be held from 10 a.m. until the time of the service in the funeral home. Burial will be private and held at the convenience of the family. The family will provide flowers.