David aka Skipper Dude Dave Walker

Jul 3, 2026

Gather round, you living souls,

And listen closely, if you will,

To the tale of a legend we all knew,

Whose voice, in memory, echoes still.

To some, he was Dad, Dave, Papa, or Grandpa,

But to others, near and far,

He was known simply as the Skipper Dude—

Though never from the Malamute Saloon bar.

He was no stranger to the cold,

But a teller of tales with a heart of gold,

With a spirit forged by wind and ice,

Remarkably brave and bold.

He hailed from rugged Newfoundland,

Where fishing tales were born—

Stories of grit upon the sea,

And even fishing for lamb before the morn.

Gifted with a wandering soul,

He traveled from town to town,

A janitor, paramedic, and sandwich pioneer,

Never one to settle down.

From the hills of West Virginia

To Alaska's Last Frontier,

He followed every winding road

With adventure drawing near.

Then, beneath the midnight sun,

He met a lady he had never seen before.

A courtship with his beloved Trace

Turned one wandering life into four.

With the ocean running through his soul

And his eyes forever toward the sea,

He captained many a vessel—

The Skeet, the Apache II, and the Trace Marie.

At last, his wife Trace and brother Ron

Met him where the heavens gleam.

He arrived at the gates finally free—

Though he nearly passed them in his six-speed Mustang machine.

So raise a glass to the Skipper Dude,

A storyteller, husband, father and friend.

Though his voyage on this earth is over,

His stories will never end.