07/06/2010 - David Arthur Hood

David Arthur Hood, 75, of Morrill, NE died Friday, July 2, 2010 at the Golden Living Center in Scottsbluff, NE. Dave suffered a massive cerebral stoke on June 6^th and spent 20 days at the Rapid City Regional Hospital before being moved to hospice care in Scottsbluff. He spent his last days there surrounded by his loving family.  His memorial service will be held on Tuesday, July 6^th at 2:00 pm at the United Methodist Church in Morrill with Pastor Rick Reisig officiating. There will be no visitation as cremation has taken place.  David wished for his remains to be scattered over some of his favorite family fishing and vacationing spots.  In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the Chadron State Foundation and the Morrill Fire Department. Online condolences may be left at www.jones-mortuary.com.  Jones Mortuary in Mitchell is charge of arrangements.

     David was born on February 19, 1935 in Chadron, Nebraska, to Fred and Katie (Stumpf) Hood. Dave’s strong determination (often called “stubbornness” by those close to him) was first evident at his birth when he was afflicted with smallpox. His mother had been exposed to them while befriending a train-traveling companion during her pregnancy. Despite being given the prognosis of an untimely death, he survived and thrived after being quarantined for a time.

     Dave graduated from Chadron High School in 1952. He was a great basketball player and opposing teams would not look forward to playing against “that Hood kid.” He served in the U.S. Army for two years and then continued his education at UNL and Chadron State College, earning a BA degree in education in 1960. His teaching and coaching career took him and Mary to Alliance, Hyannis, Huntley, WY, and Morrill. He taught English, Social Studies, and Aviation; and coached football, basketball, and track. He even managed the swimming pool and taught swimming and diving at Hay Springs for two summers in the early 1960’s. His love for his students and athletes gave him pleasure for years to come.

     Other endeavors during his life included managing the Legion Club in Torrington, working in insurance, managing the ASCS office in Laramie, and farming. He retired and worked at the Lyman Convenience Store for over 20 years. He especially enjoyed the people and was blessed to become a part of their close-knit community.  In 1958, Dave married Mary (Hanks) DeCastro along with her children Vern and Yvonne. Their 50^th anniversary was on October 17, 2008 and they celebrated by going on an Alaskan cruise in July of 2009 with 16 family members.

     Dave loved family gatherings and fishing with his boys (sons, grandsons, and sons-in-law). He loved to watch his grandchildren participate in sports and would often drive five hours roundtrip to watch them run for less than five minutes. Dave was a faithful football fan of the Chadron State Eagles and the Nebraska Cornhuskers. He and Mike enjoyed attending the Chadron games together and even went to the Orange Bowl in 1994 to see the Huskers play. He especially loved the simple things in life: a walk with his dog, delivering papers with Mike, a Friday night Manhattan with Mary, getting a good deal on anything, the anticipation of a winning lottery ticket, a phone call from his children or grandchildren, a tomato grown from his own garden, fishing with a Panther Martin lure. He was a member of the Methodist Church in Morrill, Elks Club, and the American Legion in Torrington. 

     Dave is survived by and will be greatly missed by his wife, Mary; his children, Vern DeCastro of Rapid City, SD, Yvonne Kaylor-Arner of Martell, NE, Mike Hood of Morrill, NE, Kathy Petersen of Fort Collins, CO, and Robyne Huebner of Fort Collins, CO; his grandchildren, Derek and Tarra DeCastro of Rapid City, SD, Noah and Seth Kaylor, and Kelsey Arner of Lincoln, NE, Lindsey Long, Ben and Gracie Petersen of Fort Collins, CO, and Abby, Maddy, and Jacob Huebner of Fort Collins, CO;  his great-grandchildren Victoria, Katherine, and Fiona Kaylor of Lincoln, NE, Isaac, Alexandria, and Alyssa Kaylor of Lincoln, NE; and his sister, Helen Strohbehn of San Jose, CA.

     Dave is preceded in death by his parents, and his 3 brothers, John, William (Rod), and Ted.