It is a great loss to lose my friend, Dave. When I joined the Agronomy faculty in 1984, Dave greeted me with a hearty handshake and broad smile. He helped me procure a small grant for research on wheat as a forage crop. He also provided a graduate student who just started his program with Dave, and was looking for a project to do. Dave's tremendous support got my career off to a good start, and provided a new graduate student with a very interesting and fruitful project. We ended up publishing three peer-reviewed papers from that student's thesis, which, in turn, helped me get promoted.
In the last two years, well into both of our retirements, I have reconnected with Dave on neighborhood walks and as a coffee buddy with other UA retirees. My wife, Jane, and I also enjoyed the great pleasure of getting to know Dave's loving wife, Elaine, and his dear daughter, Gretchen. Dr. David Longer was a fantastic husband, father, professional colleague, friend, and mentor of students.