Dave Oeschle
Dave Oechsle joined the Crossmen’s administrative staff in 1975 and was with the corps until 1986. From the minute he joined the Crossmen organization, Dave was a doer. He served as tour director, treasurer, driver, fund raiser, mechanic, and assistant corps director and many times when needed the Corps Director. He spent untold hours planning the summer tours and was always there to help do anything necessary to make the corps operate as smoothly and efficiently as possible.
His first duties were to organize the Crossmen’s first tour. With the help of Donald Whiteley, DCI promotion person at the time, Dave put the first Southern Tour together. With a first tour behind him, he continued to organize the tours for the rest of his time with the Crossmen as well as work a full-time job and raise a family.
He generously donated the use of his own Winnebago and van as a staff vehicle and drove many miles and many hours over the course of his years of service to the corps. The command center were Dave’s own personal vehicles. Starting with a customized van, moving up to a RV which doubled as a “bed” for the bus and truck drivers as they got some sleep, while switching off to other drivers.
He and his wife Carol would go down to the fabric district in Philadelphia and get the material for the guard flags, offering their home as a site for all those flags to be sewn. Eventually, Dave took over the financial management of the corps. When the corps rented a building in West Chester looking to establish a permanent home, they ran bingo twice a week, and Dave was there calling numbers and helping the Crossmen every night. In his selfless dedication and commitment to the Crossmen for twelve long years, Dave has embodied the giving spirit and the values of hard work, teamwork, and sacrifice that make him a more than worthy addition to the Crossmen Hall of Fame.
David D. Oechsle of Barnegat, N.J., formerly of Yardley, Pa., passed away Tuesday, March 15, 2016
His first duties were to organize the Crossmen’s first tour. With the help of Donald Whiteley, DCI promotion person at the time, Dave put the first Southern Tour together. With a first tour behind him, he continued to organize the tours for the rest of his time with the Crossmen as well as work a full-time job and raise a family.
He generously donated the use of his own Winnebago and van as a staff vehicle and drove many miles and many hours over the course of his years of service to the corps. The command center were Dave’s own personal vehicles. Starting with a customized van, moving up to a RV which doubled as a “bed” for the bus and truck drivers as they got some sleep, while switching off to other drivers.
He and his wife Carol would go down to the fabric district in Philadelphia and get the material for the guard flags, offering their home as a site for all those flags to be sewn. Eventually, Dave took over the financial management of the corps. When the corps rented a building in West Chester looking to establish a permanent home, they ran bingo twice a week, and Dave was there calling numbers and helping the Crossmen every night. In his selfless dedication and commitment to the Crossmen for twelve long years, Dave has embodied the giving spirit and the values of hard work, teamwork, and sacrifice that make him a more than worthy addition to the Crossmen Hall of Fame.
David D. Oechsle of Barnegat, N.J., formerly of Yardley, Pa., passed away Tuesday, March 15, 2016
