David Dagenais' Obituary
David Dagenais (1942-2022)
David Dagenais, a grateful husband and life partner of 43 years to Scott H. Strickler, died at Beebe Hospital in Lewes, Delaware on August 27, 2022, following a long struggle with complications arising from infection by the Covid 19 virus.
David leaves behind a large number of family members, both given and chosen, including brother Richard and his wife Cathy, and sisters Dorothy R. (Dottie) Dagenais and Jean (Queenie) Bailey and her husband Richard, as well as nephews and nieces too numerous to list, in addition to grandnephews and grandnieces and many, many friends.
David was born in Hartford, CT, on June 22, 1942, along with his twin brother, Daniel, (d. April 2, 1987). He was also predeceased by his parents, by his sisters Elizabeth (Liz) McLaughlin, Anne McAvoy, and Lee-Ann Lee, and by his brother George, Jr. (Butch).
David graduated from Weaver High School in Hartford, CT, in June 1960. He served in the United States Marine Corps from 1960 to 1966 and was trained and then assigned to serve as a Portuguese linguist, both stateside at the National Security Agency in Maryland and aboard ship during various deployments. David later worked as a proof-reader and copy editor with The National Geographic Magazine at its headquarters in Washington, D.C., as a horseman in Dale City, VA, and as a direct mail customer service representative then comptroller, at a small direct mail firm in the Maryland suburbs of Washington, D.C.
Following an episode of major depression, David began college in 1994 at the age of 52, graduating six years later with a master’s degree in social work (MSW) from the University of Maryland School of Social Work in Baltimore, MD.
David and his husband, Scott, moved to Milton, DE, in 2000 and he worked for six years at a child welfare agency in Caroline County, MD, where he earned his license as a clinical social worker (LCSW-C). He spent the next 7 years doing what he loved best, providing mental health services as a psychotherapist. David finally retired in 2014.
David was a long-time member of Epworth United Methodist Church in Rehoboth, DE, and recently joined the Unitarian-Universalists of Southern Delaware congregation in Lewes, DE. He especially enjoyed movies, gardening, his two pet dogs, who each shared thirteen years of life with David and Scott, and travel. He will be remembered as a person of intelligence, persistence, spirituality, warmth, and wit.
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