David died April 3, 2018, in Portland, Oregon, from complications of a home accident the previous year. He started his firefighting career in high school before being drafted into the Army where he served three tours in Vietnam.

Upon release from the Army, he rookied at Cave Junction in 1967 where he jumped for 13 years until the base was closed after the 1981 season. He had 366 jumps and was admired for his tenacity in keeping his patented feet-knees-hands-nose landing style in the midst of all efforts to change it.

David was on the first jumper detail to the Eastern U.S. at Wise, Virginia, in 1971. He began working for the Alaska Fire Service in 1984 and retired from the AFS in 1996 before moving to Portland.