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Born on February 28, 1942 in Bryn Mawr, PA to the late Charles and Gertrude Lyons, Dave graduated from Horace Greeley High School in Chappaqua in 1960. He achieved Eagle Scout rank and went on to earn a BSME degree from Lehigh University in 1964 and a MBA degree in Finance from Columbia University in 1969.
While at Lehigh University, Dave joined the wrestling team, Theta Delta Chi fraternity and ROTC. After graduation, he served in the U.S. Navy, attending Officer Candidate School before being assigned to the Charleston Naval Base in South Carolina as the Assistant Resident Officer in Charge of Construction (AROICC).
His next assignment took him to My Tho in the Mekong Delta region of South Vietnam. Assigned as the OICC there, Dave led the construction of a Navy PBR (patrol boat, river) base. In recognition of his military service, Dave was awarded the National Defense and Vietnam Service Medals, Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal and the Bronze Star Medal with the Combat ”V” clasp for valor.
Dave joined Corning Inc. in 1969 and enjoyed a 34-year career in manufacturing that took him from Corning, NY to Louisville, KY to Blufton, IN to Paden City and to Martinsburg, WV. He retired as Vice President of Environmental Engineering responsible for Corporate Facility Engineering and Environmental Compliance.
He served on several Boards of Directors, including the Peoples National Bank in Martinsburg, WV, Corning Hospital in Corning, NY and the Everglades Club Condominium Association in Naples, FL, where he and his family enjoyed vacationing.
Dave was a history buff with a special interest in fostering family connections between the past and present. He investigated the heroic history of his first father-in law, Lt. Col. Kent Fay’s service in the U.S. Army until his death in Rully, France after D-Day.
Dave was an avid Boston Red Sox fan and loved the time he spent in Cape Cod. He enjoyed boating, fishing, swimming and listening to pipe organ music. Most of all, he was an enthusiastic cheerleader for any activity his children or grandchildren participated in!
In addition to his parents, Dave was preceded in death by his first wife of 39 years, Joanne Fay Lyons, who died in 2004. He remarried in 2011 and is survived by his loving wife, Jeanne Marie Lyons; two sons, Sean (Lisa) Lyons of Sterling, VA and Kent (Sylvie Dugrenier) Lyons also of Sterling, VA; one daughter, Suzanne (John) Chevalier of Loveland, OH; a brother, Richard (Janice) Lyons of Pisgah Forest, NC; two stepsisters, Jane Holmes of New York and Carol Ruderman of Connecticut and seven grandchildren, Aidan, McKenna and Ryder Lyons, Ryan, Zachary and Kyra Chevalier, and Carolina Celnik. Dave is also survived by three “bonus” children who came as a gift with his second marriage, Teri (Jim) Pickering, Laura (Mike) Van Scoyoc and John (Jen) Boehm as well as eight grandchildren, David and Emily Pickering, Eric and Jake Van Scoyoc, Jessica Kelly and Jack, Sophie and Ava Grace Boehm.
A celebration of Dave’s life will be held at Grace Presbyterian Church at 4012 Birdsville Rd. in Davidsonville, MD on Oct. 2, 2021 at 11 a.m. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to the Wellfleet Historical Society or Hospice of the Chesapeake.
Online condolences may be offered at Kalas Funeral Homes.
Obituary contributed by Kalas Funeral Homes.
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