David Louis Neumann was born in Winona, MN on May 13, 1945, to Hubert and Rose (Hammel) Neumann, of Dover, MN. He passed away peacefully with his wife Karen beside him on November 21, 2024, in San Angelo, TX.
Dave was baptized and confirmed at St. Paul’s Church north of Eyota. David grew up on his parent’s family farm north of Dover and attended Dover Elementary School. In his late teen years, he moved to Eyota with his parents and attended Dover-Eyota High School, where he played most sports, was a member of the National Honor Society, participated in theatre and graduated with honors in May of 1963.
After high school, Dave went to Lakeland College in Wisconsin for 1 year and transferred to St. Cloud State University in Minnesota where he graduated with a degree in social work in 1967. He was proud that he was able to pay his way through school by working at a local vegetable canning plant during the summers and cleaning the church throughout the year.
Upon completing his bachelor work, he was drafted into the Army during the Vietnam war. He served honorably from 1967 to 1969. After he finished basic training, he thought he would be going to Vietnam but instead was assigned as a social work psych specialist at Fort Benjamin Harrison in Indiana. He was discharged two weeks early to start school again at Indiana University, where he received his master’s degree in social work.
Dave’s first career job was in Platteville, WI where he worked as a social worker. While living in an apartment complex in Platteville, he and a neighbor took an interest in one another. After taking this young lady out for supper one night, he realized he just found the love of his life, Bonnie Rayford. Dave and Bonnie were married in Platteville on January 31, 1972. Bonnie was a professor at The University of Wisconsin in Platteville.
The most difficult question to answer about Dave is “what was his occupation?” After all the schooling and military experience in social work, he decided that social work was not for him. Dave then started to “dabble” in real estate, as he put it. He struggled financially as a realtor as he was too honest to stick a young couple with a house they could not afford, but he loved working in the real estate field. Besides real estate, he was also an efficiency expert for various companies. Mostly, Dave followed Bonnie’s career and was very supportive of her, which included moving when opportunities occurred. His family finally decided that Dave’s true occupation was that of a historian.
Dave and Bonnie moved to San Diego, California in 1979 where Bonnie became the Dean of Undergraduate Studies. Her final career move was to Pennsylvania in 1992, where she was a Dean at the University of East Stroudsburg.
In 2004, Bonnie retired, and they moved to Williamsburg Virginia. This is where Dave truly excelled. Being an avid study of the revolutionary period, he quickly become an expert of everything associated with Colonial Williamsburg. He guided many house guests through the town and sometimes added to or corrected the actual tour guides employed there.
On October 26, 2006, Bonnie died very unexpectedly. This left Dave devastated. He talked about her everyday for the rest of his life.
After a deep and thorough investigation of where to go next, Dave moved to San Angelo, TX in 2015. In 2017, he met the next love of his life, Karen Smart Mosley Wyatt. Dave and Karen were married on November 18, 2017, in San Angelo.
Dave’s life was one of constant research on subjects from history to vacation planning to becoming investment savvy. He still had plans for vacations taken 25 years ago! He owned stakes in oil wells, an area which he had a vast knowledge of. If you had a few hours to spare, you could bring up politics with Dave. He loved humorous cards and clothing that would start up a conversation. He talked to anybody and everybody about any topic, often approaching strangers and starting a conversation. Dave also has a deep concern about future generations, sharing what he knows with all who will listen.
David leaves behind his loving wife, Karen of San Angelo, TX, a brother Harold (Janice) of Rochester, MN, A brother-in-law “Little Brother” Ron Rayford of Farmington Hills, MI, many nephews, nieces and friends.
David was proceeded in death by his parents, his wife Bonnie, his brother Ken and sister-in-law Theone, Bonnie’s brother Larry, and sister Barbara, and a great niece.
Harper Funeral Home of San Angelo, TX and Schad and Zabel Funeral Home of Eyota, MN are in charge of the arrangements. There will be a service sometime in the spring at St. Paul’s Church in rural Eyota, MN.
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