The La Jolla Village News mourns the loss of award-winning columnist David Dreiman, who died April 24. He was 91.
Raconteur, bon vivant, intellectual, compassionate advocate for the hurt or lost, emotional family man ” all of these terms describe David, as well as his more familiar titles of writer par excellence, editor and mentor. I was proud to call him my friend, and we forged a close professional partnership during the years he wrote a weekly column for the paper.
He stopped writing for the Village News a few years ago, but I kept his name on our masthead ” not only for sentimental reasons, but because he told me he wanted to resume sometime in the future. I thought 2008 might be the time since nothing got David fired up more than politics and elections.
We first met when David left the La Jolla Light after many years to join “the competition.” He asked to meet me, and I naively thought it would be a short conversation about deadlines and other nuts-and-bolts topics concerning his column.
He called me the next day to tell me he would indeed come over to the Village News, and it was then I realized that our meeting had been an interview, all right ” but to see if I passed muster!
Each week, I looked forward to David’s column, as I know many readers did. He was inspired by many things ” current events, memories, recollections of great people and even more mundane topics, such as the way dogs might think. Whatever the subject, David was not only eloquent but spoke from his heart. Even after decades in the business, he cared about every column ” indeed, each word within it! ” and would call or stop by with suggested changes or small polishings.
One of my toughest jobs as David’s editor was when a newspaper contest loomed. Three columns were to be submitted, usually from the space of a year. It would take a long time for me to go through the files, since I stopped to reread many of the gems I rediscovered there. Then I would find I had picked 25 or 30 for consideration.
With the Village News, David won several awards from the Independent Free Papers of America. He also won a prestigious award from the California Newspaper Publishers Association. The convention that year happened to be at the Hotel del Coronado, and I was proud to attend with David and his daughter.
Although awards and accolades were pleasing to David, even more than that was the fact that one of his honored columns was a beautiful tribute to his wife Beryl, who had recently died. It brought tears to my eyes ” and his ” every time we spoke about it.
Their love affair lasted from the time they eloped as 18-year-olds, became richer and more full of joy as the years went on and was an inspiration to all who knew them.
David, my friend, I know I cannot do justice to you with my clumsy words. I will miss you, but more than that, I am glad I had the chance to know you. You have made my life all the richer for it. Vaya con Dios.