Charles David Rife's Obituary
Charles David Rife passed away Monday morning, May 16, 2016 at Presbyterian Village in Austell, Georgia. He was 93 years old. He leaves behind three children; Diane Leveroni, Tim Rife and Phil Rife. Three grandchildren; David Wilson, Leigh Todd and Sean Rife. And three great grandchildren; Patrick Wilson, Claudia Todd and Wesley Rife.
Dave was the eldest of three children born in Bellaire, Ohio of Harvey and Dorothy Rife. During World War II he served in France with the 83rd Division and was wounded there on July 4, 1944 and was awarded the Purple Heart medal.
At wars end he returned home, married and was among the first to hold the newly-minted Masters Degree in Library Science. He urged his children to attend college, but never used greater earnings as a justification. Instead, he pointed out that, with a college education, one was better able to spend their professional life doing something loved – rather than merely working. He loved his profession and never worked a day in his life. True to his calling, he once said that education was not so much about learning things, but more about finding out where the information you needed could be found. He spent the majority of his professional life as the Director of the Technical Library at the Lockheed plant in Marietta.
That quest also guided him in his two great passions; music and books. A third passion was the well-crafted dry martini made with Tanquerey gin and Martini and Rossi vermouth, mixed 3:1 in advance and stored in a one gallon container kept in the freezer so that, when consumed, no water-producing ice need be applied.
David's professional and personal life revolved around books. His large personal library contained volumes on military history, music and the macabre. If the answer to a dinner time question was unknown, David could usually look it up in his collection of reference books.
But music was his absorbing delight. For many years he sang with the Atlanta Symphony Chorus and made a Grammy Award-winning recording of Beethoven's Ninth Symphony with them. In 1981 he performed a concert version of Wagner's opera Reinzi with the Atlanta Choral Guild at Carnegie Hall in New York City.
David's personal library contains more than 530 recordings ranging from well-known warhorses to the truly obscure. It also holds 30+ volumes on the subject.
What most people remember about David, however, was his sense of humor. He knew hundreds of jokes and rarely stumbled when repeating them. But humor was also a part of his conversation. In what may have been his final words, when asked about the disposition of his ashes, he said, “I don't know … kitty litter?”
A memorial service will be held at 11:00 A.M. At Presbyterian Village in Austell on Saturday May 21st .. In lieu of flowers, people are asked to make a donation to Caring Hands at Presbyterian Village, 2000 East West Connector, Austell, GA 30106. This is a fund that provides care for those who may be a resident but are unable to continue to pay. The fund makes sure no one is turned out.
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