David Bernstein

West Point, 2001

Be Thou At Peace

Posted by Kyle Barden on December 26, 2009:

Dave was one of the best...cadets, officers, people...that I knew. Although we were classmates, I did not know him very well at West Point. However, being stationed with him in Italy for a while allowed me the fortunate opportunity to get to know him better. As a matter of fact, just before I left C Co/1-508th while we were in Kirkuk, Dave was transitioning in as the new XO. Dave was the type of person that you always enjoyed being around. He was focused, yet very easy going; accomplished, yet humble; respected and loved. I will never forget seeing him in Kirkuk around October 15, 2003, just a few days before his untimely, unselfish, heroic departure from this world. We both had had the opportunity to stop by the Kirkuk Airfield. I saw him in our makeshift gym there and I specifically remember making fun of him for the intense, 100 mph crunching exercise that he was doing (must have been some crazy Scuba thing!). We both had a good laugh (Dave was always good natured), exchanged some brief conversation about how everything was going, and then resumed our separate workouts before going back to duty. What a great guy! I just wanted Rich, Gail, Michelle, and all others who miss Dave to always know that many, many people still remember the great life he lived in such a short amount of time. May God bless you and keep you, as I am sure He is doing with Dave right now.

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