He was the loving and devoted husband of Barbara Wiedemann whom he recently described to friends as "the best thing that ever happened to me in my life." The two met in August 1997 while Dave accompanied a friend to Logan's Nursery in Raleigh. That day, Dave found a loving and accepting wife; the friend got a schefflera. "I got the better of that trip, " he said two years later at his wedding in Chestertown, Md.

Dave was proud to work for SAS and of his accomplishments there. But more thrilling to him than being part of a successful, fast-growing and humane company were the dear friends he made there. Those friends include, but are not limited to, Jeff Perkinson, Dave Schlotzhauer, Larry Noe, Randy Betancourt and Jim Davis. Many years ago, Dave began a Wednesday "bad movie" night tradition among some of these friends. After dinner at a local restaurant, often Maximillian's in Cary where the owners always treated him so well, the boys would head to science fiction, thriller, suspense or shoot-em-up movies that their wives couldn't stomach. There's no telling how many marriages Dave saved with that idea.

Dave was a great athlete, enjoying skiing, camping, cycling and backcountry exploring. Just two months ago, he was fishing for salmon in Alaska. He was also a gourmet cook, a fan of the arts and an avid reader, especially of newspapers and magazines. In the last months of his life, he had undertaken an effort to read many of the great books one misses while majoring in economics: "The Deerslayer, " "To Kill A Mockingbird, " "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, " "Lonesome Dove" and "Travels with Charley" among them. His favorite piece of recent fiction was "Cold Mountain." He also had a great appreciation of Asian culture, an interest that he was able to develop in the two years that he served as the SAS chief of technical support for Asia and the Pacific. He took many trips through the region.

Dave was born on Feb. 4, 1945, the son of Mae Evans Brumitt and Roy "Bud" Brumitt in Calico Rock, Ark. Both are now dead. He had one brother, James, who was his hero. James died young while studying to be an Episcopal priest. The family moved to Bakersfield, Cal., while Dave was a boy. Roy owned and operated a grocery store there while Dave lived an "American Graffiti" childhood and teen life. He played football and baseball, skied and became enormously interested in cars. In recent years, Dave could be seen driving around his west Raleigh neighborhood in his black Porsche Boxster with the top down.

He graduated from Bakersfield Junior College and then earned a bachelor's degree from Idaho State University. Uncle Sam called in 1968 and Dave served two years in the U.S. Army. Although trained as an MP 9th Military Police Company of the 9th Infantry Division Dave served in a combat infantry role during most of his year in Vietnam. He carried and operated an M-60 machine gun and was awarded the Army Commendation Medal upon his honorable discharge. When he returned to the U.S., Dave became active in the opposition to the war but, throughout his life, maintained close contact with the members of his squad and was able to enjoy reunions with several of them this summer.

He earned a master's degree in economics from the University of Utah and spent his early career working for Utah state government in transportation and corrections. He moved to the Triangle to work as a computer programmer with SAS in March 1985. Under the guidance of friend and mentor Lee Richardson, Dave steadily moved up the ladder at SAS, becoming the director of tech support in 1999.

While dating, Dave and Barb both served on the N.C. State Theatre Endowment Board. She later told friends, "His unconditional love changed my life." When the two married, they decided to live a great life together. They traveled the globe, bicycled through North Carolina and entertained friends with their cooking often to repay them for watching Barb's dogs while the pair were off on their world journeys. In winter 2002, Dave was diagnosed with adenocarcinomal esophageal cancer. He underwent surgery the day after a 100-mile bicycle ride, and fought tenaciously through a five-month recovery. Dave was able to return to SAS and the co-workers he admired and respected. When his cancer returned, however, he and Barbara decided to pull out all the stops. They sold Dave's Boxster and purchased two Harley Davidsons that carried them to the sea and the mountains. They flew to Spain and Portugal to see the beauty of the Iberian Peninsula. They traveled to the wilds of Utah with friends Dan Wilkinson and Kate Dixon, and to New York City with friends Paul, Charlene and Michael O'Connor for a week of Broadway and Italian food. In late August, they enjoyed the wonders of Alaska with the Murdock family, and Dave proceeded to Utah to show his friend Jeff Perkinson the natural wonders of that state.

Dave had a life well lived.

Dave's family wishes to thank Dr. Tommy D'Amico and staff at Duke University Medical Center for the surgery that extended Dave's life; Dr. Mark Yoffe and his staff for their warm and intelligent care which helped Dave live his life to the fullest; nurse Nancy Krombach of SAS for her friendship over the years and advice during his illness; Molly Kiefer for her wisdom and kindness; and Lee Readling of Hospice of Wake County for helping him to die in peace and comfort at home with his wife.

In addition to his wife, Dave is survived by his in-laws, Joe and Elke Wiedemann of Chestertown, Md., sister-in-law, Karin Wiedemann of Washington, D.C., brother-in-law, Peter Wiedemann of Seattle, Wash., cousin, Pat Hudson of Bakersfield, her son, Thom, of Hawaii, and other family members in California.

The family requests that, in lieu of flowers, contributions be made to

The Dave Brumitt Foundation
P.O. Box 6725
Raleigh, N.C. 27628

"I wanted you to see what real courage is, instead of getting the idea that courage is a man with a gun in his hand. It's when you know you're licked before you begin but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what. You rarely win, but sometimes you do." Atticus Finch, speaking to his son, Jem, in Harper Lee's "To Kill A Mockingbird."