David Augustine

David J. Augustine Obituary

Funeral services for David John Augustine of Edgemont, S.D., formerly of Chadron, will be at 10 a.m. Saturday, July 22 at Chamberlain Chapel in Chadron. Burial will be at Greenwood Cemetery. He died Tuesday, July 18 at the Hot Springs Hospital following a bout with cancer.

David was born Dec. 27, 1944 in Chadron to John and Prudence Augustine and grew up on the family ranch east of Chadron. He accepted Christ as his savior and was baptized as a youth, and continued to practice his faith the remainder of his life.

He was a kind, witty, gentle and honest person who often hoped the underdog would come out on top.

He attended rural schools in Dawes and Sheridan counties and graduated from Chadron High School in 1963. Shortly afterwards, he enrolled at the Spartan School of Aviation in Tulsa, Okla., where he studied airplane mechanics. During this time, he also was a member of the Army National Guard.

David initially worked for United Airlines about seven years in Chicago and Omaha before purchasing a dump truck and hauling sand and gravel in the Fort Calhoun area near Omaha for two years.

In the mid-1970s when the railroads were expanding, he was employed as a carman (one who repairs freight cars), by the Union Pacific. He initially worked at Council Bluffs, Iowa, and then at Laramie, Wyo., until retiring in 2000 following an injury.

His life abruptly changed on June 6, 1992, when he married his high school sweetheart, Bobbie Marshall Dolberg, at Camp Norwesca south of Chadron. They spent 25 happy years together, supporting one another in their hobbies and caring for one another in sickness and in health.

The Augustines lived in Laramie until 2004 when they moved to Edgemont to be closer to family and the Black Hills.

Flying was something he enjoyed a lot. Not much is known how he became a pilot, but through the years he owned at least a dozen planes of various models and vintage. He once was forced to land in a corn field because he flew too low while buzzing a friend who was driving down a country road. Another time his plane was damaged when it collided with a horse that ran onto the makeshift landing strip.

As a youth, David rode Harley-Davidson motorcycles and later became a self-taught amateur archaeologist. After spending countless hours searching for native artifacts by himself when he was single, his collection grew faster after Bobbie joined him on ventures to various remote locations.

In recent years, they spent much time caring for one another as both battled cancer. Bobbie is grateful for his patient and loving help during her recovery from surgeries beginning about 10 years ago and she became his caretaker when his ailment was detected in August 2014 and he went through the entire treatment process. After having two "good years," the nasty disease returned earlier this year.

Besides Bobbie, survivors include his step-children, Randy Dolberg (Heidi Short) of Casper, Wyo., and Kerry Lantgen of Chandler, Ariz., and their children, Owen, Hayden, Emily and Ava, all of whom called him Grandpa.

Other survivors include his sister, Phyllis (Emory) Scherbarth of Hay Springs, brother Tom (Mary Jane) Augustine of Cleveland, Tenn., 11 nieces and nephews and numerous cousins. He was preceded in death by his parents, a younger brother, George, who died soon after birth, and a niece, Betsy Scherbarth Guthrie.

A nephew, Pastor Bruce Scherbarth, will officiate at the services. A memorial has been established for Friends Against Breast Cancer. Contributions may be sent to Chamberlain Chapel, PO Box 970, Chadron, NE 69337.

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