David Dyke

David Dyke was a born in Philadelphia on February 21, 1949 and grew up in the Overbrook Park section of the city. He graduated from Central High School and received his B.A. in anthropology from Temple University. He met his future wife during freshman year and they remained together until his death. He returned to Temple for his M.S.W and spent his entire career striving to help the people of his hometown. He had an insatiable thirst for knowledge and was a lifelong learner. After a brief illness, David suffered a major stroke and died on April 3, 2020. He is survived by his wife, Sue Dyke; his daughter, Jennifer Campbell; his son, Jonathan Dyke; his son in law and daughter in law, Jason Campbell and Ernesta Dyke; his grandchildren, Jonathan Dyke II,  Jordan Dyke, Alexis Campbell and Connor Campbell; his brother, Charles Dyke; his nephew, Alex Dyke, his sister in law Diana Simmons; his nephew, Kevin Bethea and his brother in law Glenn Laws.

David was a renaissance man. Not in the modern-day sense, but in the classical definition of the term. He was an artist, astronomer, musician, scientist, linguist, world traveler and more. He excelled at sharing what he learned, making connections between seemingly unrelated tidbits and creating knowledge bridges in the process. As an artist, his works included everything from cartoonish characters and silly caricatures to majestic dragons and beautiful otherworldly landscapes. As a musician he had a deep love for jazz and blues and was never found without his harmonica nearby. A brilliant conversationalist, he could discuss virtually any topic for hours. Never condescending and always engaging, conversations with him inevitably turned into an exchange of ideas among peers. His thirst for knowledge led him to learn multiple languages as well as the etymology of each. His interests were wide and varied, spanning everything from ancient history to the latest astrophysical theories. Yet for all of his scholarly pursuits, he was a simple man who surrounded himself with nature. He was loved by children and was just as likely to befriend a pet, as it’s owner. While his hands were happiest buried in soil, tending to his plants and flowers, he always made time to look up towards the stars. Every point of light in the night sky has a story and he knew them all. He’d share those stories with anyone who’d listen and happily pull out his telescope to let you see the planets and stars with your own eyes. He loved the sea as much as the Earth and stars. Snorkeling was always a passion of his but later in life, he trained to become a PADI certified scuba diver. Wherever he traveled, he made time to dive whenever possible and he visited reefs all around the world. Professionally, he could have been anything but he chose to help others. He spent the majority of his career as a social worker saving children from abuse. After retiring, he continued to help others by supervising services for the elderly population of Philadelphia.