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David Lee McGaffee

Posted 2018-02-19 by Judy Wight Branson
The Daily Courier, Prescott, Arizona
Thursday, February 15, 2018, page 6a

David Lee McGaffee, age 52, went to be with the Lord on Jan. 23,
2018, in Prescott, Arizona.

David was born in Phoenix on June 4, 1965. He attended Brophy Prep
and graduated from Central High School in 1983. He attended ASU and
went to work with his father at the family business, Phoenix
Vegetable Distributors, until he took over running the Ben Avery
Shooting Range in 1995.

David and his father traveled throughout the country, shooting
competitively together and individually from the time David was 11
years old. At the age of 14, he was captain of the Sub-Junior All
American Skeet Shooting team and was selected for the American
Junior Team two years later.

In 1979 he attended the U.S. Olympic training camp in Colorado
Springs, Colorado, and in 1981, he was the Junior Skeet Shooting
title holder for Zone VII. He continued to compete and win many
other competitions and accolades, including the 20-Gauge World
Champion Skeet Shooter in 1996. In 1998, he won the Arizona Skeet
Shooting Association’s 410 Gun Champion. David was inducted into the
Arizona Skeet Shooting Hall of Fame.

During David’s lifetime, he was a racing enthusiast, everything from
moto cross to formula cars. He actively pursued racing as a
profession, competing in moto cross for three years. He was given
the opportunity to attend the Jim Russell British School of Motor
Racing in Riverside, California, and drove competitively on the
Russell Graduate Series at Riverside Raceway and Laguna Seca Raceway
in Monterey, California. He also raced at Phoenix International
Raceway and was a member of the Verde Vaqueros.

David was loved by everyone who met him, he had a crowd-pleasing
personality and never met a stranger. If it was in his power to help
you, he would. He will be greatly missed by his family and many
beloved friends. David is survived by his mother, Jean McGaffee;
aunt, Laura West; and uncle, John Ekstrand.

The family asks that in lieu of flower, donations be made in David’s
name to the Skin Cancer Foundation, 149 Madison Ave, Suite 901, New
York, NY 10016; (212) 725-5176.

A Celebration of Life will be held on March 2, 2018 at 2 p.m., at
American Lutheran Church, 1985 Drive, Prescott, Arizona.

Information provided by survivors.




Note: These obituaries are transcribed as published and are submitted by volunteers who have no connection to the families. They do not write the obituaries and have no further information other than what is posted within the obituaries. We do not do personal research. For this you would have to find a volunteer who does this or hire a professional researcher.

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