David Harold Behnke

David Harold Behnke, 72, of Clinton, peacefully departed this world on February 12, 2015, with his loved ones by his side. He was born in Meriden on May 14, 1942 to the late Harold and Helen (Wright) Behnke. He leaves behind Gladys (Torres), his wife and joy of 11 "long, hard, miserable years." He is also survived by his loving brother, Richard Behnke and sister-in-law, Connie (Marchese). He will forever be remembered by his brother for the wonderful summers they shared together at the cottage at Mulberry Point in Guilford. He was the loving father, consummate supporter and hero to his daughter, Christine Le, and son-in-law, Huy Le. He will forever be a memorable and loving part of the life of his grandchildren, Zachary and Talia ("Zacha-rino and Talia-rino"), as their Papa, the man who knew everything and who was always there for them. Dave will forever be father, best friend, and hero to his son David Michael Behnke. He had tremendous love for his daughter-in-law, Allison (Van Hof), and his granddaughters, Charlotte and Alyssa. He will always be their Poppa. Dave was a member of the 1960 graduating class of the Francis T. Maloney H.S. in Meriden. He then served in the U.S. Air Force for 4 years. After his honorable discharge from the Air Force, Dave attended and graduated from the University of New Haven, earning with honors a Bachelors’ Degree in Electrical Engineering. He started his career as a Microwave Radio Engineer and moved on to becoming a Mainframe Network Engineer. He worked for MaBell, SNET, CSC, SBC, and AT&T. Upon retirement, he kept himself busy with volunteer work. He enjoyed meeting people and he made a lot of friends as a volunteer for the Meals on Wheels program. He also helped as a tax preparer for AARP. His other passion was walking and hiking. And anyone who knew Dave knows that he was a huge UConn basketball fan. Family and friends may visit the Swan Funeral Home, 80 E. Main St., Clinton on Wednesday February 18, 2015 from 5pm-8pm. For online tributes and condolences, please visit www.swanfh.com. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Estuary Council of Seniors, Inc. (Old Saybrook) for their Meals on Wheels program. The family would also like to express their thanks to the medical and support staff at the Smilow Cancer Hospital at Yale-New Haven for the care and compassion they provided to Dave and his family in his final days. As Dave always said as his parting words - "Have a nice weekend! See you next year!"