David Allen Knecht lived life to the fullest. He was a contradictory, complex man who loved golf, horse racing, travel, and the ladies—not necessarily in that order. He was changed by Vietnam, as so many of us were. He became a successful dentist, businessmen, father, brother, and friend. He was his own man and was noted for his honesty and direct manner.
David was raised in rural Belvidere, NJ. He was so close to his cousin, Susie Browning—they grew up together—that they considered each other brother and sister. They did everything together. Susie was with him when Dave began swinging a golf club at about age 11. He was a straight-A student and a model son. He played baseball and basketball, rooted for the NY Yankees and particularly loved Mickey Mantle.
For high school, Dave went to Valley Forge Military Academy, where he excelled. He played basketball, baseball and other sports. He was at the very top of his class academically all four years. He was a cadet captain, commander of B Company, and the president of his class.
In the summer of 1964, he joined the Long Gray Line. He continued his record of excellence. He was again at the top of his class academically. He was the president of the Russian Club and actually visited the Soviet Union with the club. He continued his love affair with golf. He wound up as the assistant regimental operations officer, attesting to his leadership.
David was going into the Engineers, but, when General Westmoreland addressed the Corps, Dave switched his preference to the Infantry. After graduation, he went to Vietnam, serving as a platoon leader and battalion S-4 with the 101st Airborne Division.
Vietnam changed David. He left the military. He decided he wanted a stable, 9-to-5 job where he could serve people. Although accepted at a number of medical schools, he attended the University of Pennsylvania Dental School. He worked three jobs to make ends meet, but classmates remember him skipping classes to go to clubs, the track, and the golf course. Nevertheless, with a practically eidetic memory, he aced his exams and graduated at the very top of his dental school class.
He went into dental practice in Plainfield, NJ with his partner and best friend of 30 years, Dr. Richard Matsil. His concern for others and generosity were revealed when Richard blew a tire on his car and had no spare. Dave bought a tire, drove half an hour to bring it to him, and helped him mount it. As fate would have it, another pothole blew out a second tire. David cheerfully repeated the same routine, expressing that “that’s what friends do for each other.”
Dave married after Vietnam and had a son, Scott. Dave loved to travel. Scott particularly remembers a special RV trip they took together when he was 9. They visited Yellowstone and Yosemite National Parks and the Grand Canyon. Dave loved to travel and also toured extensively through Latin America. Scott became an artist in San Francisco, CA, a talent he attributes to his mother’s side. He was kind of a hippy and a free spirit. Dave was really proud of Scott but sometimes wondered what Scott actually did and was all about. Nevertheless, Dave accepted Scott unconditionally, and Scott was with his dad at the end. They were emotionally close.
Dave was a businessman as well. He managed the dental practice and invested in real estate in New Jersey. He also invested in horses. He loved the track. He bought a thoroughbred and raised him. When the horse sprained an ankle—usually career-ending—David’s personal concern again came to the fore. Despite the advice of others, Dave rehabbed the horse at great expense. He returned the horse to health, and it went on to be a winner at the races.
He also bought a historic home, built in 1698. The house was secluded. It was surrounded by a tree nursery and provided a sanctuary for deer and other wildlife. Dave loved solitude, and there were many hikes in the wilderness there. In 1998, Dave held a celebration of the 300th anniversary of the house he was so proud of.
After 30 years, Dave decided to hang it up and retire. His “sister” Susie was in the Tucson area of Arizona, and Dave decided to retire there. He went to dinner at Susie’s every Sunday, bought another 300 acres of land nearby, and a house a quarter of a mile away. Golf, always a love of his, became a way of life. He had a following of other golfers, all older than Dave, mainly in their 80s. Dave led them and took them to tournaments they never would have participated in without his attention and leadership. They deeply mourned his passing at his funeral.
Dave was diagnosed with mantle cell lymphoma on January 28, 2019. He had had a cough and, as he always did, avoided going to the doctor. Susie finally took him, and he wound up in the emergency room. In the ensuring month, Susie and Scott were there for him as he had been for them. Mantle cell lymphoma is a form of non-Hodgkin lymphoma that is presumed to be caused by Agent Orange exposure in Vietnam. It is cruel irony that an experience that so changed him caused Dave’s untimely death and that the disease bears the same name as his childhood hero. David passed on March 7, 2019. May he rest in peace.
— Bruce Parry, family and friends