Obituaries

On December 9, 2022, David Martin Knowles, devoted husband, father, and grandfather, peacefully passed away at the age of 95. He was born on July 22, 1927 to Donald and Sarah Knowles in Saginaw, Michigan. After graduating from Arthur Hill High School in 1945, he enlisted in the U.S. Coast Guard and later served two years in the U.S. Navy. He married his high school sweetheart, Shirley Jean Schnell, on October 30, 1945, a union that lasted 61 years until her passing on March 15, 2007.

As a life-long learner, he was one of the 260 students that made up the first class of the newly formed Sault Branch of Michigan Tech. He would later receive both a Bachelor and Master’s Degrees in Geological Engineering from Michigan College of Mining and Technology in Houghton. David would spend 14 years working for Canadian Javelin Limited, a mining exploration company headquartered first in Montreal, Canada, then New York City, and later Ottawa, Canada. As Chief Geologist his duties would range from overseeing surveys at mining sights “In the Bush” to helping to promote these sights to the stockholders in the boardroom. He would eventually go on to earn his PhD from Columbia University in New York City. David’s career with Canadian Javelin allowed him to travel extensively before settling back in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan. In the fall of 1969, he accepted a position as an Associate Professor at Lake Superior State College. Known as “Doc Rock” to his students, he would continue to teach at LSSU until his retirement in 1996.

David was an intelligent and thoughtful person with numerous interests apart from his work. He was a life-long member of the Masons, spent countless hours documenting family history, was a religious follower of Laker Hockey, and loved to be outdoors, either at the cabin or working on his flowers in the yard. He was also an antique car fanatic and was considered an authority on the Hudson Car Company models from the 20’s and 30’s.

David is survived by his brother Robert Leigh Knowles, and by his two children, Lesley (Pete) Hewer and Brian (Teri) Knowles, along with his three grandchildren Sarah Etapa, Haleigh and Matthew Knowles. David had requested there be no service or memorial, but the family will intern his ashes at Oaklawn Cemetery sometime next summer. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to Shriners Hospital or Hospice House of the EUP.