William David Mace

On January 11, 2020, William David Mace (known as Dave to those that loved him) crossed over to join his late son, Dwayne, on the brighter side of Life. Born in Mt. Holly on September 24, 1941 to Truett and Faye Mace, Dave, for the bulk of his 78 years, made Charlotte his home. ! As a boy, Dave worked concessions and operated the projector at the Gaston Theatre in Mt. Holly. It was there that he met Glenda Ann Summey, his wife of nearly 60 years. As a teenager, he spent his days working at a nearby golf course where his lifelong love of the game was permanently instilled. He shot in the low 70s but rarely admitted it. A Veteran of Foreign Wars, Dave joined the Navy in 1959 and was stationed at Whidbey Island, Washington. While touring the Pacific on an aircraft carrier, the USS Constellation, he worked on fighter jets, thereby discovering his natural aptitude for electronics. He applied this, with timely focus, to the larger part of his life’s work-- the newly emerging field of computing. After his service, Dave used the G.I. Bill to earn a Bachelors of Science degree and for 27 years worked as a Data Analyst with the American Credit Corporation (which later merged with Barclay’s Bank of England) in uptown Charlotte. There he rose to the position of Vice President of Information Systems. After retiring from Barclay’s, he opened and ran a successful restaurant in Charlotte and then, after selling it, started a successful freight company which he maintained until his death. Dave loved the Romantic poets, Wordsworth in particular, and often read verses aloud with his daughter at his knee. “Lucy Gray” was among his favorites. Dave’s own gift for words was evidenced by his writing and his many award winning speeches for Toastmaster’s International where he demonstrated his natural ability to provoke thought without pretense and pepper his prose with a razor-sharp wit. Dave usually left audiences “rollin‘ in the aisles,” moved to tears, or both. His wise and genuine voice will be greatly missed. When he wasn’t working, speaking, golfing, or playing with a grandchild, Dave was sitting on a beach, learning to fly a plane, parachuting out of one, or battling level 5 rapids in the New River Gorge. And through it all, he used his glorious sense of humor to make everyone around him laugh. 

Dave was fiercely loyal to and responsible for the family that he loved. His survivors include his wife Glenda Summey Mace, daughter Kelly Mace, daughter-in-law Andrea Mace, grandchildren Kayleigh Mace, Zak Mace LaPrade, Brandy Mace Skelly, her husband Matt Skelly, and their son, Dave’s great grandson, Benjamin David Skelly. Also surviving are Dave’s sister Kay Waters, her husband Carl, and their daughters Karla McNeal and Kasey Auburn.

True to his Spirit, Dave asked for a celebration of his life rather than a funeral and such will be announced below. Because of his deep love of animals, especially dogs, (and their obvious adoration of him) the family asks that, in lieu of flowers, donations be made in Dave's name to the Humane Society of Charlotte by visiting humanesocietyofcharlotte.org. 

Condolence messages may be sent to the family by visiting www.woodlawnfuneral.org. Woodlawn Funeral Home of Mount Holly is serving the family.

The celebration of Dave's life is scheduled for February 9th in Cornelius, North Carolina. For details, email a message to Kelly at DayForDaveMace@gmail.com.

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