David "Dave" W. Lewis

On Father’s Day, June 19, 2022, David Warren Lewis passed peacefully to his Father in Heaven following a long battle with heart disease. His loving wife, Kathy Lewis and his sister, Evelyn Lewis Cole were at his side when he was finally able to put all the pain and suffering he had endured over the last eight years behind him, and go onto greater glory.

David was born in Duncan, OK on January 29, 1950 to Warren and Roy Nell Lewis. Dave was part of the first class of students to attend the new Horace Mann Elementary School. In 2018, Dave was inducted into the Duncan High School Athletic Hall of Fame.

He excelled at sports and was awarded with scholarship offers from Wichita State University, as well as an appointment to play football for the U.S. Naval Academy. Choosing between the two was a difficult decision for Dave. He decided to forgo the Academy and attend Wichita State with his friends Donnie Christian, and Jim Franks.

Back then, college freshman players were not allowed to play on the varsity football team. In his sophomore year, he excelled as a defensive end and was named conference defensive player of the year. He was considered one of the top defensive ends in the country and sparked the interest of several NFL teams, including the Dallas Cowboys who dispatched Gil Brandt, director of player personnel, to meet with Dave.

He spent the summer of 1970 in Wichita along with three of his teammates including Donnie Christian, who was one of his best friends since the second grade. They spent the entire summer working out and practicing plays. As the summer ended, they became increasing optimistic about the prospects for their team. They, of course, had no idea that thirty days later, on October 2, 1970 their world would be shattered when their team plane crashed into a mountain in Colorado. Donnie did not survive.

Dave severely injured his knee in the crash but attempted to play football again in the fall of 1971, but was physically unable. This ended his chances of a career in the NFL. He graduated from Wichita State in the spring of 1973 and went to work for Halliburton in west Texas. He then moved to Overland Park, KS where he pursued a career in the real estate business and met his wife of 36 years, Kathy Harding.

Dave worked to not let the tragedy define his life. He loved life and considered everyday a gift but a day did not go by without thinking of his teammates.

If you had to use one word to describe Dave, it would have to be humility. He never took credit for anything. He always directed the attention away from himself and towards others.

If you were allowed to have one more word to describe Dave, it would be grace. Grace and humility go hand in hand, and so it was for Dave. He forgave easily, encouraged the less talented to achieve more than they would have ever expected of themselves, helped the less fortunate, gave more than he got, and reveled in the beauty of life. You see heroes in movies, but Dave was the real deal. The world was a better place with Dave. He was the stuff of which heroes are made. It’s hard to imagine anyone ever taking his place.

Dave is preceded in death by his parents, Warren and Roy Nell Webb Lewis, his grandparents, Roy and Ora Nell Webb and Alvin and Pearl Lewis, his aunt and uncle, Helen Faye McConnell and Bert Webb and his cousin, Gary McConnell.

Dave is survived by his wife Kathy and son Dylan; sister Evelyn Lewis Cole and her husband, Bruce; cousins Charles McConnell and his wife Peggy and Julianne McConnell; brothers- in-law Bill Harding and his wife Robin; Tim Harding and his wife Luane; and Ben Harding and his wife Susan; along with numerous nieces and nephews.

It is said that a person who only has one good friend is rich beyond measure. So those who attend Dave’s Celebration of Life are urged to look around you and you will see why Dave and all of the attendees at the Memorial are the wealthiest people on Earth.

A private family ceremony will be held on July 9, 2022. Details are pending on a Celebration of Dave’s life to be held in Duncan, OK. The family would like to express their deepest of appreciations to the healthcare providers of Advent Health. In lieu of flowers, donations in honor of Dave may be made to the following:

• Advanced Heart Care Clinic at Advent Health Shawnee Mission – 9100 W 74th Merriam KS 66204

• Olathe Health Hospice House - 15310 Marion St, Olathe, KS 66061

• Pancreatic Cancer Action Network, Kansas City Purple Stride – 1500 Rosecrans Ave. Ste 200, Manhattan Beach Ca 90266. An organization Dave was deeply committed to after the death of his friends from Wichita State, Randy Jackson and Jerry Gleissner.