David Alexander Lawrence

With deep sorrow, we announce the passing of David Alexander Lawrence, a beloved father, grandfather, business owner, and Navy veteran, who peacefully passed away at his home in Port Ludlow, Washington on April 14, 2023, at the age of 86.

David was born on September 12, 1936, in Long Beach, CA, to his parents Alexander Lawrence, Jr. and Ora Gayle Briscoe Lawrence. Growing up, David admired his father's love for fishing, camping, boating, and woodworking. He shared his father's interests and developed a great passion for the water, sailing, and working with his hands.

David attended the University of Redlands and earned a degree in geology in 1958. Shortly after, he joined the Navy and completed Officer's Candidate School (OCS) at Newport, Rhode Island in 1959, one of his proudest moments in life. On his flight home from OCS graduation, he met Shirley Johnson, a TWA stewardess, and they later married in 1960 in Farmington, Connecticut. As a commissioned officer at sea, David achieved the rank of Lieutenant and took command over hundreds of enlisted men and dozens of division officers. He had multiple deployments to the Mediterranean, putting into ports in Gibraltar, Valencia, Barcelona, Malta, and Greece, to name a few. David was detached from active duty in 1962 to begin graduate school at the New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology (NMIMT), but he continued to serve as a commissioned officer in the U.S. Naval Reserve until 1972.

As a young 29-year-old, now married with two children (Kurt and Todd), David had to unfortunately abandon his master's degree due to financial and family commitments. He moved his family to Glendale, CA and worked as an engineer for Bookman Edmonston Engineering. David remarried in 1970 to his office flame and colleague Leandra Edmiston. He adopted her son Steve, and she adopted Kurt and Todd. In search of a smaller town to raise their new family, the Lawrences moved to Willows, CA in 1970, where David took a position with the U.S. Forest Service. Still in search of the perfect Northern California town to call home, David and his family ultimately settled in scenic Redding, CA in 1973. After several years as a senior engineer with CH2M Hill, David started his own company, Lawrence Drilling, Co., a water well drilling company. Despite the tough and unforgiving business of drilling wells, with his trademark work ethic and determination, David persevered and grew the company into a successful consulting firm named Lawrence & Associates, which still thrives today, providing civil engineering, hydrogeology, and engineering geology services throughout California, Southern Oregon, and Northern Nevada.

At the age of 62, David retired from Lawrence & Associates and moved to Sequim, WA in the Pacific Northwest to be near the sea. His cherished memories of childhood camping trips on the lake in his father's homemade boats and his time in the Navy left an indelible mark on David's heart and mind. He devoted much of his time in Sequim to meticulously restoring boats, skillfully captaining his sailboat with family and friends, and relishing moments of peace on the open sea. David also enjoyed researching his family's genealogy and after ten years of painstaking work and interviews, he published multiple hardback volumes detailing the Lawrence Family history.

In 2010, David relocated to Port Ludlow, WA to embrace the serene vistas of Squamish Harbor and savor a more tranquil lifestyle filled with hiking, reading, woodworking, and corresponding with family and friends. However, David encountered a setback when he suffered a stroke during surgery. In a selfless act of love, his son, Steve, put his own life on hold in Atlanta, GA, and moved to Port Ludlow to care for David for five years, providing tireless compassion and support until his passing.

David was preceded in death by his beloved sisters, Jane and Susan. He is survived by his three devoted sons Kurt (Staci) Lawrence, Todd (Kimberly) Lawrence, Steve Lawrence, his precious eight grandchildren, his prior wife, Leandra Lawrence, and all his lifelong friends and colleagues at Lawrence & Associates. He will be dearly missed by all who had the privilege of knowing him.

A small private service will be held for immediate family members. The U.S. Navy will conduct a burial at sea on the open waters.