Final Salute

Joseph David “Dave” Kunz, age 89, passed away suddenly on September 8, 2026. Dave was born in Austin on January 28, 1937, to Theodore John and Harriette Cecile (nee Brown) Kunz, the second of their six children.

Dave was educated almost entirely in Austin, attending Saint Austin’s Elementary School, University Junior High School, Austin High School, during which time he also served as a page in the Texas House of Representatives, and the University of Texas. He graduated in 1960 with a bachelor of architecture. He earned a master in business management from the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, California, but that shouldn’t be held against him. A devoted Longhorns football fan, his love affair began when he and his brother worked in the stands selling snacks and continued when he walked on to the team as a freshman, even though, as he put it, he was used mostly as “cannon fodder.”

While Dave loved growing up and living in Austin, he was an adventurer at heart. For him, adventures came in all sizes, whether it was a spring afternoon drive into the Hill Country to see the bluebonnets or an impromptu trek to explore the hill towns of Campania. He craved new vistas, waterfalls and beautiful sunsets. With him it was always, “let’s find out where this road goes,” “let’s stop and swim in this river,” “let’s see what the view is like from up there.”

To chase adventure and serve his country, Dave volunteered for the U.S. Navy after college during the Vietnam war, becoming an officer in the Civil Engineer Corps. When he deployed to Vietnam with the Navy Construction Battalion, or “SeaBees,” he helped build infrastructure to support the troops engaged in combat missions. One of his first jobs in the Navy was in Antarctica where he led teams responsible for building New Byrd Station while living in tunnels under the ice. During the Arctic winter, on a lay-over in New Zealand, he met his future wife Lorna “Milli” Milligan. They were married in 1963. Dave and Milli had four children as they moved across the U.S. and around the world together and stayed married for nearly 18 years. They’ve remained friends for much longer.

Throughout his nearly 30-year military career, Dave was stationed in California several times, as well as in Texas, Spain, Maryland, Virginia, Guam, Italy, and Georgia. His roles in the Navy as he ascended to the rank of Captain included developing technology to clean oil slicks from harbors and the ocean, running public works departments (e.g., water and wastewater treatment) for Naval bases, negotiating with foreign governments for leases to relocate military bases, and coordinating the activation and deployment of SeaBee reservists during the first Gulf war. He was awarded the Legion of Merit for exceptional meritorious conduct during his service.

Dave returned to Austin after retiring. His main occupation in retirement was managing rental property he had acquired over the years. His son and daughter eventually worked with him to manage the properties and acquire new ones.

Meanwhile, he continued to indulge his love of adventure, visiting Mexico on a motorcycle with his son, driving down the Baja California coast with his brother and nephew to watch whales migrate and rafting class five rapids on the Rio Grande with his brothers. He climbed the Inca Trail in Peru to the ruins of Machu Picchu and once spent four days on a market boat on the Niger River on the way to Timbuktu. He drove across North America countless times to visit his kids in California or Georgia, go skiing and register voters in Colorado, tour Nova Scotia and Newfoundland, travel the Lewis and Clark Trail, and go to all the sports Halls of Fame with his son. His last road trip, completed in late July, was with his four kids, their partners and his grandkids to re-visit his favorite cities in Spain. It included Pamplona, where he and his kids had run with the bulls several times over the decades, Madrid, Barcelona, Granada, and Sevilla. Dave always valued experiences over “things” and knew spending a month on the road with his family would create meaningful memories. His family will treasure that gift forever.

No one Dave met was a stranger for long. He would chat up folks at the next table in restaurants, even if they spoke no English, and servers seemed to love him. He was an engaging, very funny storyteller, sharing tales of his world-wide travels, describing pranks he played in college, and reminiscing about his most meaningful relationships. His stories included how he once partied with Elvis, picked up William Warfield at the airport, met Tom Robbins, a favorite author, who playfully propositioned him, and once gave unsolicited photography advice to an elderly man with an unwieldy camera at Point Lobos, California, only to learn the next day he’d been speaking to Ansel Adams. He loved to laugh, even (especially) at himself.

He loved listening to live music of any kind, singing folk songs and old sea shanties, reciting poems and dancing. He loved sitting in an inner tube on Cypress Creek and hand-cranking ice cream during family reunions in Wimberley each year. He loved Italian and French food, or anything with gravy. He insisted that his black coffee was scalding hot, his “weenie rolls” with mustard were from Upper Crust, and a glass of wine was the only cure for the “arm cramp” he seemed to get every evening around 5 p.m. He was a news nerd who detested current corrupt leaders and longed for sanity and civility to return to politics.

He will be remembered for so many things, especially his love and support of his family, how he made people he cared for feel like family, his sense of adventure, his humor and corny sayings, his devotion to justice and fairness, and how he was always there for anyone who needed help.

Dave was preceded in death by his parents, Theodore (1993), and Harriette (2009).

He is survived by his siblings, Theodore “Ted” John Jr, Carolyn Sue “Sue” Wetherold, Jane Marilyn McCarty, William Ernest “Bill,” and Kathleen Cecile “Cecile” Bogan, his children Heather (& Steve Daleke), Brian (& Diana), Raque, and Blaine; and his grandchildren, Benjamin and Rowan Kunz-Peek, nieces and nephews, his “kid’s mom” and friend, Milli, and his companion, Mescal Evler.

The Recitation of the Holy Rosary will begin at 10:30 a.m. at St. Austin Catholic Church, 2026 Guadalupe St. Austin,TX 78705, Mass of Christian Burial to follow starting at 11:00 a.m. at the same locaiton. Burial to immediately to follow at Assumption Cemetery with full military honors being rendered.

To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Joseph, please visit our floral store.