David Paul Cowles

DAVID PAUL COWLES

March 7, 1933 to September 21, 2025

David Cowles passed away on September 21st. He was blessed with a long productive life of more than 92 years, getting to be active doing the things he wanted to do until only days before the time God called him home. His family and people around him were blessed by his love and kindness.

The best description of David is “He was a good man.” He was hard-working, honest, and strong-willed but humble. He was not overly outgoing, socially, but liked people. He was the type who liked to do things himself and always had a lot of jobs to do. When it came to family, he couldn’t do enough. You saw David’s strong spirit by being around him.

David was born on March 7, 1933 to Robert Taylor and Anna Lorene (Ivy) Cowles in Dyersburg, Tennessee, the youngest of Robert and Lorene’s five children. David graduated from Dyersburg High School and then joined the U.S. Air Force right out of high school in 1952. He remained in the Air Force for a total of eight years specializing in electronics, most of his time working with radar systems. He married Hazel Irene Tilley in 1956 while stationed at Forslund Air Force Base, Missouri. David and Irene met on a blind date, and rumor has it that it took him two months to get the courage to ask her for a second date. They would have been married for 70 years in 2026.

David was an electronics specialist in the Air Force from 1952 until 1960. He later talked about his first station in British Columbia and spending the winter there maintaining the military early warning radar equipment. He talked about many feet of snow, the cold winter. He had driven a car he bought and drove from Dyersburg, Tennessee and since he wouldn’t need a car at his next deployment, he had one of his friends at the British Columbia radar station drive him to the airport and then sold the guy his car. His next deployment was a more temperate climate at a radar installation just off the California coast near San Diego.

When David left the Air Force in 1960, he went to work as an electronics specialist for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Weather Service. He worked with the Weather Service until he retired in 1988. While with the Weather Service he worked in Omaha, Nebraska, Oklahoma City, and finally Tulsa, much of the time maintaining various types of radar systems.

A loving father, David and Irene gave birth to daughter Marilyn Kay in 1964. Through the years the family enjoyed many adventurous activities such as dirt bike (motorcycle) riding, snow skiing, and traveling around the country. The interest in motorcycles led to Marilyn’s first vehicle being a Yamaha dirt bike that she rode to high school. He decided one year to take then 28-year-old daughter Marilyn back to Omaha where she was born, with wife Irene and two-year-old grandson Jeremy. But Omaha had changed a lot in almost three decades, traveling with a two-year-old was challenging, and they soon turned back homeward.

David’s two big hobbies in life were golf and snow skiing. He worked relentlessly to perfect his skills in both. He acquired quite a library of VHS and CD videos in both sports. For a few years after retirement, he rented a kitchenette hotel room by the month near a Colorado ski area and would take off on what was intended to be a week-long ski trip to practice his skiing. While he seldom stayed the entire intended week when skiing alone, snow skiing remained a pleasure for David and his family, and he continued to ski into his mid-seventies. David’s love for golf started when he was a boy, which he continued to play into his late-80s. He talked of playing at a golf course with sand greens as a boy where you had to rake the sand green in a certain way to put. Weeks before his passing he still wondered if the “new” equipment that come out every year was really any better.

David was a highly active type of guy, much like the Energizer bunny. He just kept going and going. He was a do-it-yourself man and was amazing at the projects he undertook. He worked all year to design and build Christmas lights and electronic motion decorations, but when he won the neighborhood Christmas decoration contest, he was embarrassed by the attention and hid the First Place sign behind the house. David often gave his time for home remodeling or repair projects for family and neighbors. Taking care of his yard and home was his lifelong passion. Upon seeing his yard, people would usually mention how it looked like a golf course, perfect in appearance.

He was almost never sick until he had to have a heart valve replacement four years ago but recovered well from that. He continued to remain active until days before his passing, working in and mowing his two-acre yard and making repairs around the house. His family is grateful he was given a long and active, loving life until the years finally took a wonderful man.

David Cowles was pre-deceased by brothers, Thomas, Robert Jr., and Charles, and sister Rose. He is survived by his wife, Irene, daughter Marilyn and husband Jim Thomas, grandson Jeremy McDaniel and wife Haleigh, great granddaughter Adalynn McDaniel, and many nieces and nephews.

The Cowles family wishes to thank the many neighbors and friends who have expressed their sympathy and prayers during our time of loss.