GORHAM – David Lawrence Abbiati, 76, of Gorham, died Nov. 11, 2019, with his wife Thea by his side, after a long and difficult journey with cancer. Dave was a generous, loyal, and intellectually curious man, a trait that he passed on to his kids and grandkids.

Dave was born in Boston in 1943 to Ebe and Lawrence Abbiati and lived in the Boston area and Falmouth, Maine as a child. He had warm memories of summers spent in Barre, Vt. with his maternal grandmother and aunt and many other caring, older women, all of whom he called Nonna, grandmother in Italian.

Dave received a B.A. from Bowdoin College, an M.S. from the University of Maine, and a Ph.D. from the University of Connecticut. He worked as a chemistry teacher at Falmouth High School, a human resources director for several companies, and later as an HR consultant. Dave earned a pilot’s license as a young man and had a passion for flying, most recently with the Bald Eagle Flying Club. Singing was also a big part of his life. Dave sang with the Choral Arts Society as well as with the St. Alban’s choir in Cape Elizabeth.

He and Ruth Abbiati were married for 45 years until she died in 2012. They raised their sons, Joe and Tony in Westbrook. While Dave said that teaching them to catch a ball or keep pet snakes was fun, the time spent looking at a bit of the yard or beach to identify something different was the most rewarding. He felt it was an honor and pleasure to watch Joe and Tony grow into two fine men. Joe lives in Lebanon and has two sons himself, Tony and Larry. Tony lives in Newton, Mass. with his wife, Alicia and three children, Masie, Bria, and Gavin.

Seven years ago, Dave reconnected with Thea Darrah, whom he had dated at University of Maine, Orono. They married in 2014 and went on adventures together to Italy, Iceland, and Hungary. Thea was Dave’s fiercely dedicated caretaker in the last challenging year. The love that they had for each other was enviable and obvious to anyone who saw them together.

A celebration of Dave’s life will be held on Friday, Nov. 22 at 11 a.m. at St. Alban’s Episcopal Church in Cape Elizabeth.

Arrangements are in the care of the Gorham Chapel of Dolby Blais & Segee, 76 State Street, Gorham, ME 04038. To express condolences or participate in Dave’s online tribute, please visit www.DolbyBlaisSegee.com.

Donations may be made to

St. Alban’s

(stalbans@stalbans

maine.org) or to

Preble Street

(www.preblestreet.org),

which works towards creating solutions for homelessness, hunger,

and poverty.

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