David Terry Wright

David endured decades of diseases, surgeries, pain, infections, and illnesses but his sense of humor was always present even up to his last few days, when he faced his most recent and final crisis, making the medical staff smile.

David was born in San Antonio, Texas the only child of Wilbur Wright, Jr. and Elizabeth Suite Wright. After surviving polio at a tender age, he embarked on several healthy decades of learning, working, raising a family, and following his interests and hobbies.

He taught high school in Poteet, did scientific field work in Pakistan, taught university classes in California and Illinois, worked as a museum director, curator, and consultant in Idaho and Texas, contracted with the National Park Service in Seattle, and wrote restaurant reviews, edited copy, and did page layouts for San Antonio’s The Recorder Times weekly newspaper.

He attended local schools and graduated from Trinity University with a Bachelor’s Degree in Biology, furthering his education with a Masters in Zoology from the University of Arizona and a Doctorate in Zoology from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

In the 1990’s, David was very involved with the First Unitarian Universalist Church of San Antonio. He created weekly newsletters and Order of Worship handouts, was the chairman of the Worship Committee, joined several interests groups, and had an abbreviated form of his haiku etched on a stone in the courtyard.

David loved his wife of over 30 years, Gina Mitsdarfer, children, Steve and Lisa (sadly, Lisa proceeded him in death), grandchildren Hazel and Violet, daughter-in-law Marcia Franklin, mother-in-law Merry Mitsdarfer, sister-in-law Maria Tuccori, and many other friends and family.

From a young age, he developed interests that he would enjoy all his life: baseball, jazz, reading, writing, traveling, watching movies, and cooking. And what an amazing cook he was. He amassed a large cookbook collection, learned various dishes from around the world, experimented with combinations and fusion cuisine, and watched many cooking television shows (Jacques Pépin was a top favorite). Since no dish was ever made exactly the same way twice; his wife called him a Jazz Cook. David perfected a handmade bread dough that could be used not only as a loaf of bread but also served as a base for a pizza or a calzone. He would make it from scratch; no bread machine here. Other interests were making wood furniture (his dreams of building a wooden boat did not come true but he did win a small craft once when living in Seattle), solving crossword puzzles (even with The New York Times he would use a pen), reading cozy mystery novels (especially Kate Carlisle’s “Bibliophile” and “A Fixer-Upper” series and Carlene O’Connor’s “An Irish Village” and “A Home to Ireland” series), and learning about old and rare books. He had wonderful sense of humor and used it daily. We all loved David and he will be greatly missed.