Obituary for David Earl Ovitt
MOREAU
David Earl Ovitt, 67, of Moreau, passed away on Wednesday, February 6, 2019, at Saratoga Hospital, surrounded by his loving family, after a six year battle with multiple myeloma. Dave was born in Glens Falls on December 18, 1951, to the late Dorothy (Dickinson) and Warren Ovitt. He was affectionately called “Butch” by his family, a nickname given to him as a child by an uncle. Dave married Karen Collins on March 1, 1974, and they would have celebrated their 45th anniversary this year.
Dave was a 1971 graduate of South Glens Falls High School and worked for 36 years at NIBCO in South Glens Falls until the mill closed. He worked for a short time for Boel Electric and then began the “best job he ever had,” caring for his granddaughter, Riley, and later his grandson, Alex, when he was born.
Dave was a loving and devoted husband, father, papa, son, and friend who encouraged and supported his daughters in all of their endeavors. His grandchildren were the light of his life. Dave was an avid hunter and fisherman and enjoyed spending time with family and friends, attending the activities and events of his children and grandchildren, camping at Bulwagga Bay in Port Henry, and his weekend rides in the truck with Rob. He fulfilled a lifelong dream of visiting Alaska by taking an Alaskan cruise with his wife, daughters, and sons-in-law in 2017. Dave was a founding member of the Burnham Mountain Lodge and Camp Plummer hunting camps. He loved living on the Hudson River on the same road on which his mother was born and raised.
Dave was predeceased by his parents; brothers, Stanley Walsh and Walter ‘Pete’ Walsh; sister, Shirley Harris; father-in-law, John ‘Jack’ Collins; nephews, Steven Hopkins, Tom Harris, and Jami Ovitt; and great-nephew, Daniel LaPointe.
Left to cherish his memory are his loving wife, Karen; daughters, Tina Ovitt, and her husband, James Wheaton, of Wilton, and Lori Johnson, and her husband, Andrew, of Glens Falls; granddaughter, Riley Ovitt Johnson; grandson, Alexander Thomas Johnson; “granddaughter,” Jessica Fosmer; and Robert Fosmer and his wife, Leah, of South Glens Falls, whom he loved like a son and daughter-in-law. He is also survived by his brothers, Ronald Ovitt, of Hudson Falls, and Milford (Brinda) Ovitt, of Hudson Falls; sisters, Mildred ‘Mickey’ Hopkins, of South Glens Falls, Mary (Lloyd) Jacox, of Cape Coral, Florida, and Joan Smail, of South Glens Falls; special nieces, Kelly Cook, of Gansevoort, Connie (Jim) Walsh-Toler, of Moreau, and Kathy (Carl) Petteys, of Wilton; mother-in-law, Helene Collins, of Queensbury; brother-in-law, Kevin Collins and his wife, MaryAnne, of Canton, Ohio; and many nieces and nephews. Additionally, Dave is survived by his Burnham Mountain Lodge, Camp Plummer, and Bulwagga Bay families, and many close friends, including Richard and Elaine Aiken and Ben and Charlene Bell, all of Fort Edward.
The family would like to extend a special thank you to his “team,” physician/friend Dr. Edward Liebers, and his wonderful staff for the loving care they gave Dave during his illness.
Friends may call from 4-7 pm on Monday, February 11, 2019, at the M.B. Kilmer Funeral Home, 136 Main Street, South Glens Falls, NY 12803. A Funeral Mass will be celebrated at 10 am on Tuesday, February 12, 2019, at St. Michael the Archangel Church, 80 Saratoga Ave., South Glens Falls, with the Rev. Guy A. Childs officiating. Rite of Committal will be conducted in the spring at a date to be determined. For online condolences, please visit www.kilmerfuneralhome.com.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests that memorial contributions be made to the South High Marathon Dance, 42 Merritt Road, South Glens Falls, NY 12803, to help others in need as the South High community helped them. Dave was a 2016 recipient of the South High Marathon Dance. Memorial donations may also be made to support Panther Ajak Mayen’s mission to provide South Sudanese children with school supplies. Panther is a “Lost Boy of Sudan,” author of Escaping Nightmares, Living Dreams: A True Story of One of the Lost Boys of Sudan, and a personal care assistant at Dana Farber/Brigham and Women’s Cancer Center who befriended and cared for Dave after his stem cell transplant. Panther’s autobiography may be purchased at www.amazon.com with the proceeds going to support his mission.
David Earl Ovitt, 67, of Moreau, passed away on Wednesday, February 6, 2019, at Saratoga Hospital, surrounded by his loving family, after a six year battle with multiple myeloma. Dave was born in Glens Falls on December 18, 1951, to the late Dorothy (Dickinson) and Warren Ovitt. He was affectionately called “Butch” by his family, a nickname given to him as a child by an uncle. Dave married Karen Collins on March 1, 1974, and they would have celebrated their 45th anniversary this year.
Dave was a 1971 graduate of South Glens Falls High School and worked for 36 years at NIBCO in South Glens Falls until the mill closed. He worked for a short time for Boel Electric and then began the “best job he ever had,” caring for his granddaughter, Riley, and later his grandson, Alex, when he was born.
Dave was a loving and devoted husband, father, papa, son, and friend who encouraged and supported his daughters in all of their endeavors. His grandchildren were the light of his life. Dave was an avid hunter and fisherman and enjoyed spending time with family and friends, attending the activities and events of his children and grandchildren, camping at Bulwagga Bay in Port Henry, and his weekend rides in the truck with Rob. He fulfilled a lifelong dream of visiting Alaska by taking an Alaskan cruise with his wife, daughters, and sons-in-law in 2017. Dave was a founding member of the Burnham Mountain Lodge and Camp Plummer hunting camps. He loved living on the Hudson River on the same road on which his mother was born and raised.
Dave was predeceased by his parents; brothers, Stanley Walsh and Walter ‘Pete’ Walsh; sister, Shirley Harris; father-in-law, John ‘Jack’ Collins; nephews, Steven Hopkins, Tom Harris, and Jami Ovitt; and great-nephew, Daniel LaPointe.
Left to cherish his memory are his loving wife, Karen; daughters, Tina Ovitt, and her husband, James Wheaton, of Wilton, and Lori Johnson, and her husband, Andrew, of Glens Falls; granddaughter, Riley Ovitt Johnson; grandson, Alexander Thomas Johnson; “granddaughter,” Jessica Fosmer; and Robert Fosmer and his wife, Leah, of South Glens Falls, whom he loved like a son and daughter-in-law. He is also survived by his brothers, Ronald Ovitt, of Hudson Falls, and Milford (Brinda) Ovitt, of Hudson Falls; sisters, Mildred ‘Mickey’ Hopkins, of South Glens Falls, Mary (Lloyd) Jacox, of Cape Coral, Florida, and Joan Smail, of South Glens Falls; special nieces, Kelly Cook, of Gansevoort, Connie (Jim) Walsh-Toler, of Moreau, and Kathy (Carl) Petteys, of Wilton; mother-in-law, Helene Collins, of Queensbury; brother-in-law, Kevin Collins and his wife, MaryAnne, of Canton, Ohio; and many nieces and nephews. Additionally, Dave is survived by his Burnham Mountain Lodge, Camp Plummer, and Bulwagga Bay families, and many close friends, including Richard and Elaine Aiken and Ben and Charlene Bell, all of Fort Edward.
The family would like to extend a special thank you to his “team,” physician/friend Dr. Edward Liebers, and his wonderful staff for the loving care they gave Dave during his illness.
Friends may call from 4-7 pm on Monday, February 11, 2019, at the M.B. Kilmer Funeral Home, 136 Main Street, South Glens Falls, NY 12803. A Funeral Mass will be celebrated at 10 am on Tuesday, February 12, 2019, at St. Michael the Archangel Church, 80 Saratoga Ave., South Glens Falls, with the Rev. Guy A. Childs officiating. Rite of Committal will be conducted in the spring at a date to be determined. For online condolences, please visit www.kilmerfuneralhome.com.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests that memorial contributions be made to the South High Marathon Dance, 42 Merritt Road, South Glens Falls, NY 12803, to help others in need as the South High community helped them. Dave was a 2016 recipient of the South High Marathon Dance. Memorial donations may also be made to support Panther Ajak Mayen’s mission to provide South Sudanese children with school supplies. Panther is a “Lost Boy of Sudan,” author of Escaping Nightmares, Living Dreams: A True Story of One of the Lost Boys of Sudan, and a personal care assistant at Dana Farber/Brigham and Women’s Cancer Center who befriended and cared for Dave after his stem cell transplant. Panther’s autobiography may be purchased at www.amazon.com with the proceeds going to support his mission.