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Remembering David Greer

March 23, 2016
Julie B. Miller

This article was first published in the Lancaster Bar Association’s quarterly newsletter to reflect on the life of David Greer, a friend, colleague and influential member of the Lancaster legal community, who passed away in August of 2015. David spent his last few years practicing law with Russell, Krafft and Gruber and everyone in our office feels fortunate to have had the opportunity to work with David.

Remembering David Greer

I met David Greer when he joined Russell, Krafft & Gruber, LLP, in 2008. He joined us at a time when he was ready to begin winding up his practice of more than 30 years. My partners and I all wish that our relationship with him would have begun earlier, as he was a pleasure to work with and to learn from. He spent the majority of his legal career working with Carl and Louise Herr and Judge Jay Hoberg, and managing their firm, Herr, Greer and Hoberg. That partnership formed the basis of Dave’s lasting footprint on the Lancaster legal community. However, we are grateful for the time we spent working with him, as it provided us an opportunity to get to know him both as a professional and as a friend.

At Dave’s memorial service held on December 9, 2015, Jon Gruber mentioned that we found Dave to be a very calming presence within the office, and he was. He was mild-mannered, yet jovial, and he lit up when he spoke of his wife, Linda, his four daughters, and his grandchildren.  By the time Dave came to work with us, his practice had become concentrated on advising businesses and estate planning and administration. He enjoyed the relationships he had with his clients and was always available – even after he retired – to weigh in or assist where his expertise was needed.

Dave loved sports, so much that he followed those events in which our office staff and/or their children participated with the same interest that he showed for Penn State football or the Philadelphia Phillies. His passion for boxing was paramount, though, and he judged professional boxing bouts in Maryland and Pennsylvania. He was regarded in that circle as a fair and consistent judge.  The Executive Director of the Maryland State Athletic Commission described Dave as a “true gentleman,” words which we have used in our office to describe Dave both before and after his death.

David and Linda travelled extensively throughout their lives and loved to find new places off the beaten path.  Afterhe retired,  they embarked on a cross country trip travelling the “blue highways,” visiting friends and national parks along the way.  He made sure to send us friendly postcards letting us know of their whereabouts. One postcard, sent in 2012 from Yellowstone National Park, reads:

Yellowstone never gets old, no matter how many visits one makes. This time there was lots of snow, ice covered the lake and bison abound.

There are others he sent from the Redwood National and State Parks and from the home of Lyndon B. Johnson in Texas, where he noted that he was “writing from the home of Chris Hausner’s favorite politician”. We still display all of his postcards in our office kitchen, as he remains part of our firm’s culture, even though his time practicing with us lasted just a few years. In a relatively short period of time, he made a lasting impression on all of us at RKG. He was our colleague, mentor and friend.  He is and will continue to be, missed.

Julie Miller is an attorney at Russell, Krafft & Gruber, LLP in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. She received her law degree from Dickinson School of Law and practices in a variety of areas including Collaborative Law and traditional Family Law.