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Life story

"David William Kelsey, 82, passed away on July 26, 2025 in Warrenton, Virginia, his hometown of fifty years. The youngest son of General Benjamin S. Kelsey and Carol Rathje, David spent much of his childhood on a farm in Stevensburg, Virginia, graduating from Culpeper High in 1961.

He eventually earned a bachelor’s degree in biology from the University of Virginia, but he took a sabbatical in his sophomore year (flunked out), and went to the Florida Keys with a plan to catch tropical fish to sell. Half-starving on a diet of fish and beer, he met his future wife, Laura Soumar, daughter of the owners of the motel where he stayed. Wary of scurvy, he offered to cook her dinner if she would please bring a vegetable. They married almost 58 years ago in Marathon but agreed only to a 50-year commitment, for the last eight years they have been living in sin.

In 1969, David enlisted in the D. C. Air National Guard, where he served for 22 years. He became a fighter pilot like his father and flew the F-100, F-105, and F-4. In his civilian life, his career path reflected his sense of adventure. In the 70s, he was a stockbroker with Merrill Lynch, and in the 80s, he opened the first one-hour photo service on the East Coast. After that he ran a nursing employment agency, providing temporary staffing to hospitals. He liked to joke that he rented women by the hour, men too. In the 90s, he went through a transition period, often working several jobs at a time including selling used cars, bartending, being a business broker, installing phone systems, running a travel agency, and sealcoating driveways with a guy named Ken who lived in his basement. He found consistency in the latter decades of his career as a salesman of composite aircraft repair equipment to major airlines and the military. The secret to sales, he said, was never to sell anything you didn’t believe in.

As a hobby, David enjoyed sailing on the Chesapeake Bay with family and friends. He was active in sailboat racing for many years in Annapolis and on the Potomac and was known by his crewmates as Crazy Dave. David was fun, joyful, carefree, fearless, and unflappable. He had a knack for finding himself in risky situations and coming out unscathed, often saying he had “cheated death again.”

David is survived by his wife Laura, his daughter Tiffany, son-in-law David Krebs, and a large extended family. David will be laid to rest at Culpeper National Cemetery and a celebration of life will be held at the family farm in mid-October.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to organizations supporting Chesapeake Bay conservation or the Hospice of the Piedmont, who provided wonderful support to the family in the final weeks. "