BRADENTON BEACH – A celebration of life for longtime Bradenton Beach resident and employee David Marshall will be held Saturday, Sept. 25 at 2 p.m. at the Drift In, 120 Bridge St.
Attendees are encouraged to bring a covered dish and their David stories to share with others.
David was struck by a car while crossing the street near his Bradenton home on Aug. 24. On Sunday, Sept. 5 he passed away while hospitalized with the injuries he suffered. As of last week, the accident remained under investigation by the Bradenton Police Department.
Life lived to the fullest
David was born in Dover, New Hampshire in 1947. He graduated from Dover High School in 1966 and enlisted in the Navy the next day. He celebrated his 74th birthday in August.
He’s survived by his wife, Martha Kelley Marshall, whom he married in June, his sister Nancy, brothers Roland and Bob, his stepdaughters Roberta Perella and Martha Michael and several grandchildren, nieces, nephews and other family and friends who loved him dearly.
Martha has known David for most of her life.
“The first time I met him I was seven and a half. The second time I met him I was eight and a half. Then, when I was 13, I saw him playing with his band, The Mad Hatters, at the clubs along the seaside in New Hampshire. The doorman would let me and my girlfriends peek in when the manager wasn’t around. He was rhythm guitarist and lead singer. They’d start out wearing hats, with a big antique trunk full of more antique hats on the stage. Throughout the show, they’d throw their hats out into the audience and put on another. At the end of the night, everybody had a hat on – and when they left, they’d put the hats back in the trunk,” Martha said.
“I used to rip his psychedelic, handprinted, mimeographed Mad Hatter posters off the telephone poles because I was an ‘Alice in Wonderland’ freak,” she added.
Martha said The Mad Hatters opened for The Kingsmen, who had the hit song “Louie Louie.”
And while in Los Angeles in 1967, David auditioned for The Monkees television show.
“He was first runner up under Peter Tork,” Martha said.
Martha said David came to Anna Maria Island for the first time in 1978, when he helped refurbish the concrete and steel patios and balconies at the Martinique condominium complex in Holmes Beach.
Martha later moved to Anna Maria Island as well.
“I worked with him at The Dancing Bear on Cortez Road. He worked in the dish room and I was the closing bartender. Then I worked with him again at the Drift In in 1994. I was a bartender and he worked there all night cleaning the bar. He was also doing the Pier Walk late-night breakfast so everybody could sober up and get home from all the bars on Bridge Street. He also had his own antique shop on Bridge Street called Redbeard’s Treasure Chest,” Martha said.
“We became friends and then we started going out on Jan. 23, 1998. We got married on June 28th, 2021.
Martha said David stopped working at the Drift In when the couple moved to Bradenton in 2019.
“But he would still ride the bus to go out there to see his friends on Tuesdays and Thursdays,” Martha said.
Over the years, David and Martha also worked together at the old Sun House restaurant – now the Bridge Street Bistro. Each evening, in recognition of the green flash phenomenon occasionally seen at sunset, David passed out Green Flash shots concocted by Martha.
“It was a recipe I came up with that looks like a green flash. He’d pour them into little black cups and go around the room handing them out to everybody of age. Then he would choose someone to ring the gong and he’d start out singing, ‘You Are My Sunshine,’ ” Martha said.
David also worked at The Bridge Tender Inn, delivered pizza for Oma’s and valet-parked cars at The Buccaneer Inn in Longboat Key.
When asked what she’ll miss most about her husband, Martha said, “His presence.”
She said she hopes he’s remembered for his good heart and the many acts of kindness he performed for others.
“He’s saving you all a seat in heaven,” she said.
When asked how she’s doing, Martha said, “I’m doing alright. I’m getting wonderful support from the owners and my co-workers at The Island Trader outfitters in Holmes Beach.”
Drift In legend
David performed a wide variety of duties during his four decades or so at the Drift In.
“He worked for me for probably 15 years and he was there before I got there. He was the best barback I ever had. He knew exactly what I needed and when I needed it. He had his Bloody Mary bar every Sunday morning. He had shrimp and bacon and whatever else he brought. That was a fantastic Bloody Mary bar,” Drift In manager Doreen Flynn said.
David also played Santa Claus during the Drift In’s holiday events. He did the same for holiday events hosted down the street at the Anna Maria Island Moose Lodge. David played “Father Time” during the Drift In’s annual New Year’s Eve celebrations. He also made the ball that drops at midnight and for many years it was he who dropped the ball to ring in the new year.
When not in costume, David constantly wore a feathered hat that was decorated with pins and other trinkets. That hat, and his flowing beard, added to his legacy and legend.
He also came up with the slogan featured on their souvenir T-shirts: “Drift In by the bay, where there’s a party every day.”
“David was such a good person. He had a good heart and will be deeply missed by all of us,” Flynn said.
Drift In patron and now-retired BeachHouse chef Donald White said, “David loved his bacon-wrapped scallops. He said they were like a bite of heaven. The world will be a worse place with him not in it.”
Holmes Beach resident and Drift In patron Scott Moore said, “What a great guy. I really enjoyed my conversations with him at the Drift. People knew him because of the way he dressed and the hat he always wore. He stood out. It’s a loss to the Island. We all loved him. He worked all his life, retired and this happens. It’s sad.”
In 2015, David waged a peaceful protest when he had himself taped to a black olive tree between the Drift In and the Sports Lounge that was to be removed by the city. That morning, he told Bradenton Beach Police Chief Sam Speciale he didn’t want the red tape removed until he addressed the media.
After Speciale contacted The Sun by phone, David said, “I’m taped to a tree. I’m trying to save the trees and the birds and bees. They’re taking down trees and it makes me upset.”
Speciale then said, “David said he’s watched this tree grow up and that’s why he’s trying to save it.”
When contacted last week, Speciale said, “We lost another legend.”
Loyal Moose member
David became a member of the AMI Moose Lodge in 1998. According to Lodge Administrator Byron Dalton, David earned a fellowship degree and held a third degree of that loyal order. He enrolled in the Moose Legion in 2001 and obtained his fellowship degree in 2006. He was also a prelate – a role that is similar to a chaplain. He held the office of prelate in 2001, was re-elected as prelate in 2002 and was elected treasurer in 2003. Between 2009 and 2015 held six appointed offices. As a Moose member, David signed up 110 new members.
Lodge member and administrative assistant Debbie Snook said, “Dave was awesome. He was a great Moose member. He would help anyone who needed help and he was always the first to volunteer. I’ll miss him.”
Beloved family member
Martha has two daughters from a previous marriage and they loved their stepdad, David.
Speaking by phone from Haverhill, Massachusetts, stepdaughter Roberta Perella said, “He was with my mom for 23 years, but I first met him in 2018. I fell in love with him right away. He was so sweet to my mom and she was so good to him. I could tell how much they loved each other. He took care of my mom and they wanted to grow old together but was cut tragically short.”
For the celebration of life, Roberta plans to create a memory table with memory cards upon which folks can share their memories of David, and some of his often-spoken colloquialisms.
By text message from Manchester, New Hampshire, stepdaughter Martha Michael said, “I am deeply saddened for the AMI community. David was a kind and sensitive man that loved the Island and everyone here. I can’t believe we lost him so tragically. I have friends from New England that didn’t even know David was my stepdad and they came home talking about him. I would say ‘Oh my gosh, you met my stepdad!’ I don’t think people truly understand the magic my mom and David gave to the Island. David had a huge impact on the locals and visitors worldwide!”
David’s sister Nancy Marshall lives in Sun City Center.
“David was an awesome guy and you couldn’t ask for a better brother. He beat the drum to his own music and everybody loved him. I don’t think he had a mean bone in his body and he will be missed by everyone in our family so much. We loved each other and he loved his family. He loved everybody,” she said.
“He was a unique guy. One day he got that hat and he started putting little pins on it, and the feather, and it went from there. He always wore it. Almost every picture I have of him he had his hat on. He was a happy guy. I don’t think I ever really saw him down in the dumps,” Nancy said.
David’s nephew, Erik Marshall, lives in Bradenton.
“He was the sweetest soul. He got along with everybody and he loved the Island. He was the most relaxed soul, and he was soft-spoken. I always looked forward to seeing him and I already miss him smiling at me. I learned a lot from him – like don’t let a lot of stuff get to you. He didn’t. He let the ocean calm him. He was an Island boy. New Hampshire wasn’t for him. He was the original beach bum soul. His hat was an icon and all my friends called him Uncle Dave. He touched a lot of people in his 40 years out there. Him and his hat and his feathers,” Erik said.
Erik said he plans to wear a hat in David’s honor during the upcoming celebration of life.
David also is survived by a stepson, Scott Murray, and two children, Sara DiGiacomo and Donald Marshall.
Online fundraiser
While David was in the hospital, Roberta started the “David Marshall Recovery” GoFundMe online fundraiser (https://gofund.me/3a8ad3f1) to assist David and Martha with their medical bills and living expenses. The money being raised at the still active fundraising page will now assist Martha as she moves forward with her life.
