David Campbell Edmondson
July 7, 1935 — April 26, 2017
Dave was born July 7, 1935 in Chicago where he was adopted by Margaret “Rita” and William Edmondson. He was soon after joined by his sister, Janet.
He accepted Jesus Christ as his personal savior during his youth, and was baptized at the Baptist church in Elmhurst, Illinois.
He attended the University of Illinois and enjoyed living with other students in a Christian fraternity house where they cooked for one another. At the end of every month, the budget would run low so they would eat a lot of cornbread. After that experience, Dave never wanted to eat cornbread again.
Upon graduation, he moved to Los Angeles to begin his job with LA County as a civil engineer. One of his positions was with storm drain design. He enjoyed showing off the inflatable dam his group developed and that is still located in the riverbed near his home in Downey.
In 1958, at Forest Home, he met a special woman named Colleen Lehman and they were married December 27th, 1960. They were active for many years at Hollywood Presbyterian church before joining First Presbyterian Church of Downey and later First Baptist Church of Downey in 1980.
In 1971, when Dave saw a house with pretty architecture, two towering sycamores, and a corner lot, he set his heart on moving the family into the Downey home. Dave and Colleen lived together there for the next 46 years.
In Downey they raised their three children, Steve, Sara, and Rachel. Dave tirelessly pitched balls to them, polished up their cars, made signs and birthday cards for them, and generally let them know how proud he was of them. He later welcomed Andy, Jocelyn, and her son Zaine into his fold, and they too were beneficiaries of his support and love.
Dave immensely enjoyed his grandsons Nathan, Joshua, and Cartell. He got on the floor and played with them, read to them, made funny sounds for them, and kept them giggling until his last days.
Many summers Dave drove the family to visit Colleen’s clan in Michigan, often via slightly different routes to take in new National Parks. He enjoyed his time with her extended family, especially the fierce tennis competition they provided! With his own extended family he set up and played unlimited games of volleyball, ping pong, badminton, and croquet. He cherished the relationship he had with them.
Over time he developed a close friendship with one of Colleen’s students, Estuardo, and welcomed him, his wife Monica, and their daughter Reyna into his fold as well. Similarly, when he and Colleen began sponsoring students through Children of Grace, he met Patricia. He noted that her bubbly personality, singing, and skipping through the house, had won his heart. He couldn’t help but “adopt” her into the family also.
One of the passions of his life was taking on projects and caring for the needs of those in the neighborhood. His love for God was not so much preached by him as it was demonstrated by his innumerable acts of service. He was also the “environmentalist” in the community in that he particularly found satisfaction in rescuing things people had discarded and making them useful again.
Dave’s hand bell skills and his tenor voice strongly contributed to the church music program. For many years, he served as secretary/treasurer for his Sunday School class, and oh boy! did he love the hot chocolate and doughnuts!
Backpacking in the Sierras, fishing, and being in nature brought him great joy. He shared that joy with family members and their friends by bringing them along on many trips.
Dave was creative, organized, and sometimes even a little ornery. His tender heart and servant nature have touched many lives and have left an important legacy for those who knew and loved him.
He will be missed by all of us.
In lieu of flowers or gifts, if you desire to memorialize Dave in some way, please consider contributing to Children of Grace. Their mission statement is:
Children of Grace demonstrates the love of Jesus Christ by offering hope to Ugandan orphans and other children affected by poverty and AIDS. We do this through education, healthcare, and empowerment programs to enable a better future.
Dave and Colleen have been blessed to sponsor several children over the last twelve years. Their greatest joy was when their student Patricia got a scholarship to college in the United States. It was then that Dave realized the fruitfulness of their kindness. Our family is confident that he would be honored by any contributions to the organization.
Children of Grace
www.childrenofgrace.com
P.O. Box 2394
Danville, CA 94536
“May a dying Savior’s love,
a risen Savior’s power,
an ascended Savior’s prayer and
a returning Savior’s glory,
Fill you with hope and joy and peace
until He returns
or calls you home
and you see Jesus face to face.”
Dave is survived by his loving wife, Colleen Edmondson of Downey, his son, Steven (Jocelyn) Edmondson of San Diego, his daughters, Sara Edmondson of Denver, CO and Rachel (Andrew) Bottomley of San Diego. He also leaves his grandsons, Nathan David Edmondson, Joshua Michael Edmondson and Cartell Ian Edmondson, all of San Diego and his sister, Janet Edmondson of Ventura.
Please leave the family condolences on our web site.
He accepted Jesus Christ as his personal savior during his youth, and was baptized at the Baptist church in Elmhurst, Illinois.
He attended the University of Illinois and enjoyed living with other students in a Christian fraternity house where they cooked for one another. At the end of every month, the budget would run low so they would eat a lot of cornbread. After that experience, Dave never wanted to eat cornbread again.
Upon graduation, he moved to Los Angeles to begin his job with LA County as a civil engineer. One of his positions was with storm drain design. He enjoyed showing off the inflatable dam his group developed and that is still located in the riverbed near his home in Downey.
In 1958, at Forest Home, he met a special woman named Colleen Lehman and they were married December 27th, 1960. They were active for many years at Hollywood Presbyterian church before joining First Presbyterian Church of Downey and later First Baptist Church of Downey in 1980.
In 1971, when Dave saw a house with pretty architecture, two towering sycamores, and a corner lot, he set his heart on moving the family into the Downey home. Dave and Colleen lived together there for the next 46 years.
In Downey they raised their three children, Steve, Sara, and Rachel. Dave tirelessly pitched balls to them, polished up their cars, made signs and birthday cards for them, and generally let them know how proud he was of them. He later welcomed Andy, Jocelyn, and her son Zaine into his fold, and they too were beneficiaries of his support and love.
Dave immensely enjoyed his grandsons Nathan, Joshua, and Cartell. He got on the floor and played with them, read to them, made funny sounds for them, and kept them giggling until his last days.
Many summers Dave drove the family to visit Colleen’s clan in Michigan, often via slightly different routes to take in new National Parks. He enjoyed his time with her extended family, especially the fierce tennis competition they provided! With his own extended family he set up and played unlimited games of volleyball, ping pong, badminton, and croquet. He cherished the relationship he had with them.
Over time he developed a close friendship with one of Colleen’s students, Estuardo, and welcomed him, his wife Monica, and their daughter Reyna into his fold as well. Similarly, when he and Colleen began sponsoring students through Children of Grace, he met Patricia. He noted that her bubbly personality, singing, and skipping through the house, had won his heart. He couldn’t help but “adopt” her into the family also.
One of the passions of his life was taking on projects and caring for the needs of those in the neighborhood. His love for God was not so much preached by him as it was demonstrated by his innumerable acts of service. He was also the “environmentalist” in the community in that he particularly found satisfaction in rescuing things people had discarded and making them useful again.
Dave’s hand bell skills and his tenor voice strongly contributed to the church music program. For many years, he served as secretary/treasurer for his Sunday School class, and oh boy! did he love the hot chocolate and doughnuts!
Backpacking in the Sierras, fishing, and being in nature brought him great joy. He shared that joy with family members and their friends by bringing them along on many trips.
Dave was creative, organized, and sometimes even a little ornery. His tender heart and servant nature have touched many lives and have left an important legacy for those who knew and loved him.
He will be missed by all of us.
In lieu of flowers or gifts, if you desire to memorialize Dave in some way, please consider contributing to Children of Grace. Their mission statement is:
Children of Grace demonstrates the love of Jesus Christ by offering hope to Ugandan orphans and other children affected by poverty and AIDS. We do this through education, healthcare, and empowerment programs to enable a better future.
Dave and Colleen have been blessed to sponsor several children over the last twelve years. Their greatest joy was when their student Patricia got a scholarship to college in the United States. It was then that Dave realized the fruitfulness of their kindness. Our family is confident that he would be honored by any contributions to the organization.
Children of Grace
www.childrenofgrace.com
P.O. Box 2394
Danville, CA 94536
“May a dying Savior’s love,
a risen Savior’s power,
an ascended Savior’s prayer and
a returning Savior’s glory,
Fill you with hope and joy and peace
until He returns
or calls you home
and you see Jesus face to face.”
Dave is survived by his loving wife, Colleen Edmondson of Downey, his son, Steven (Jocelyn) Edmondson of San Diego, his daughters, Sara Edmondson of Denver, CO and Rachel (Andrew) Bottomley of San Diego. He also leaves his grandsons, Nathan David Edmondson, Joshua Michael Edmondson and Cartell Ian Edmondson, all of San Diego and his sister, Janet Edmondson of Ventura.
Please leave the family condolences on our web site.
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