Early on October 7th I received the terrible call that Dave Sheetz had died the day before from a fall from a treestand. Perched high in a tree myself, a continent away. I stared at the cell phone, dazed with disbelief. My mind drifted through all the thoughts that an untimely tragedy evokes. I thought about the agony and fear that his family would bare. Dave's death was a numbing reminder of how fragile life can be.

I thought about Dave and imagined if he would have known that October 6th would be his last day on earth, and I wondered what he would have done. No doubt he would spent every minute with little Connor and Lynsie, he would have lovingly held his wife Roxann late into the night. Surely too, he would have attended to all the details that remained undone.

But one part of the tragic report that stuck in my mind and really seemed to bother me personally was that when Dave was found, he was dressed in ScentBlocker® from head to foot. I don't know why that fact affected me so much, but it did.

Dave loved to bowhunt and he enjoyed the relief from a hectic sales schedule to get away and slip into the local woods to hunt deer. One of Dave's favorite products to sell was ScentBlocker® apparel.
Bruce Hudalla used to call him "Super Dave" because he was so good at his job. I thought that if truth were known and if Dave couldn't have spent his last day with his loved ones, he would have probably been in that darned treestand, dressed in his ScentBlocker® suit, enjoying his last day with nature and hunting.

I reached down and snugged up my own safety belt and thought about life after death. I thought about Dave and wondered if he had taken care of his own spiritual business. I imagined him in heaven in front of the Lord Almighty. I could see Dave standing there kind of humble, straight-faced and somber, as the Lord eyed him up and down.

Then in a deep loud voice, "Dave Sheetz, I've seen fireman come to heaven in their uniforms, I've seen policeman in their uniforms and I've seen astronauts in their space suits, but this uniform of yours is made of ScentBlocker®, I've not seen this before...tell me about it."

Then, just as plain as if Dave was standing there in person, I could see that big crooked smile of his, the one we all knew and loved, came across his face. With a twinkle in his eye, he cleared his throat and said, "Lord, here's how this stuff works..." and Dave made his last sales pitch.

Today, Dave's family is trying to learn how to live without him. Their lives will never be the same. Dave will never be forgotten. If you would like to share a gift with Dave's family a special memorial fund has been arranged in his name.

Please write to:
Dave Sheetz Memorial Fund
Attn: Roxann Sheetz
1031 Hazel Ave.
Dauphin, Pa. 17018