David was born October 16, 1937, to Carl and Ruth (Plowman) McElvain in Chicago, Illinois. He graduated from Morris High School, where he played for the Morris Redskins Football and Basketball teams. As a young man, David learned how to work heavy machinery for his father’s coal business. Realizing that was not his dream, David enrolled in Lake Forest College and then University of Arizona, where he earned his Masters in Business Administration. David was a member of Phi Delta Theta fraternity, Beta Gamma Sigma, and the National Association of Accountants. It is at U of A where David met his wife of 57 years, Mary Rosalind (Roz) Hysong of Phoenix, AZ. They married in 1961 in Tucson, AZ, and promptly moved to Dallas, TX, where David began his career as an Accountant with Dresser Industries, Inc. David’s love for numbers and mastery of accounting quickly earned him the position of Chief Financial Officer, where he was integral in putting together multibillion dollar deals. David was also a guest speaker at Wharton School of Business. After early retirement from Dresser at the age of 55, David managed the family oil and gas business, which he presided over until his death. Apart from managing his company, Dave was an avid cyclist, and participated in the Hotter’N Hell Hundred in Wichita Falls multiple times. He loved to go fishing and spending time at his lake house. David loved watching football and basketball, for which he served in the semipros as a young man. David was involved with the YMCA SOS (slow, old and short) basketball group, and served as an usher at Church of the Incarnation. David was involved in Tres Jolie and Dallas Dinner Dance Clubs, as well as his lunch group with his Dresser cronies. In recent years, David has spent most of his time surrounded by family and friends.
David is survived by his wife, Roz; daughters, Jana (Jim) wood and Jodi (Brad) McGary; grandchildren, Lindsey (Jackson) Vickers, Haley Wood and Jack McGary; sister, Caryl McElvain Keys; nephews, Thomas McElvain, Charles Bradford and Andrew Bradford, and niece, Pamela Krueger. David was preceded in death by his parents and older brothers, Carl McElvain and James McElvain.
Funeral services will be held on Friday, November 22, at 10:30 AM at Church of the Incarnation Memorial Chapel, 3966 McKinney Avenue, Dallas, TX 75204. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to T. Boone Pickens YMCA.
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