Meet Your Neighbor: Dave Wood

Dave Wood joined the Association Board last year, after checking out the idea by attending a few Board meetings as a guest. He says he was reticent at first, but the idea of doing something helpful to make the neighborhood a better place was what carried the decision to join in and become an active member. 

Bruce: Well Dave, I saw the moving truck pull up when you moved into our Southern Gables neighborhood so I know the answer, but for those who haven’t met you, how long have you lived in Southern Gables?

Dave: It’s about four years now. I wasn’t a stranger to the place before though. I used to date a girl from here! Fortunately that worked out. Maureen lived in Southern Gables, so I was a frequent visitor both before and after we got married. Her parents were the original buyers of the house where she grew up, after the builders had occupied it while building other houses. And how about you, are you a Colorado native?  Yes, I grew up in Aurora. We raised our family there, and then moving to Southern Gables turned out to be a great choice.

What are a few things that you like most about the Southern Gables community?  It’s quiet, and friendly. I’ve always enjoyed that about the neighborhood going way back to when I first started coming here and especially since living here. I’ve known some of our neighbors all of my adult life, and everybody is interested in being good neighbors, helping each other. Just knowing about other families’ lives, being conversant with each other, is a comforting feeling. I like the fact that there is a variety of home styles, not cookie-cutter sameness, and that people take pride in caring for their homes.

Do you have a favorite memory with your Southern Gables neighbors?  Oh gosh, too many to count. With such a long history going back to dating days, there are so many things that could be said. We have a neighbor who recently retired from the Police Department and she is always willing to help with any project that needs to be done. Out walking in the neighborhood we met up with a younger couple who got a new puppy about the time we got ours, and that shared interest has been a lot of fun as we’ve gone through the learning and training process. We used to have puppy play dates.

I know you’re retired, and you worked in  materials science and engineering. How about your hobbies, things you do in your leisure time?  We love dogs, as you can probably see with our girl here. We’ve had German Shepherds, and the one we have now is a Shepherd mix. She’s eager to please and always wants attention. Another interest of mine is muscle cars. I have a few now but I don’t race anymore. That was a long time ago but I’m still always working on something on the cars. It’s serious business with me. We enjoy participating in car shows, and showing off my work to other car people and anyone who shows an interest.

What is your favorite quote or saying?  I can think of something from work, and it still comes to mind now and then. In my work at Ball Aerospace we dealt with solving problems “from sub-oceanic to interplanetary space” and the mindset is “Don’t tell me why I can’t. Help me figure out how we can.”

Any advice to neighbors or youngsters?  I think that as a society we all need to talk more, and listening more goes with it. There is so much vitriol in the air these days. Understanding the other person’s circumstances and perspective is so important.

In closing… I like seeing the changes in the neighborhood over the years as young families move in and establish their lives here. It’s nice seeing kids out playing, and imagining the future.

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