In Loving Memory of David R. Wolf
In May of 2023 we lost an amazing Badger, David Wolf ’99, MBA’03. Dave was a dear friend, mentor, and overall great man. I began my friendship with Dave when he hired me to work for Phi Kappa Sigma International Fraternity. Over the few years I worked for Dave, he became less and less my boss and more like an uncle.
Dave helped lead Phi Kappa Sigma fraternity out of the COVID-19 pandemic and did it all without firing a single staff member. When I was preparing to graduate in May of 2020, I received a call from Dave. I was expecting it to be the same call many of my friends were receiving at the same time. The notification that they would no longer be employed due to the pandemic. Last in, first out. But not Dave. Dave called me to let me know the opposite. He called me and said, we made a commitment to you, and I will continue to honor that commitment. I did not always know what I wanted to do with my life, but I knew I wanted to do something I cared about and work for someone I respected. That day I got that call from Dave was the day he earned my respect.
Throughout the next several years, I spent countless hours with Dave. Whether it was discussing Phi Kappa Sigma, talking about sports, playing golf, sharing a good meal, or just being around each other and not saying a lot. We shared some laughs and some tears, what a hell of a first boss.
In his last few days with us, I was visiting with him in the hospital. I went every day to spend time with him, never knowing whether or not he’d be gone by the time I came back. So I was always happy to get another evening with my Uncle Dave. Dave, being an avid Wisconsin sports fan, was always interested in any sports news that had to do with the Badgers, Packers, Brewers, or Bucks. So when Aaron Rodgers got traded to the Jets, I had to go and tell Dave. Dave was in a coma, so I did not know whether he could hear me when I spoke to him, but I felt like he could. So I wanted to be the one to tell him that Aaron left. Anyone who knew Dave knows that he was not technologically savvy by any means. So, most of the time when news would come out, I would be the one giving him those updates. I felt it was right for me to tell him one last bit of sports news.
I am going to miss Dave dearly, but I know he is looking down on us with a big smile on his face, a Coca Cola in his hand, and spending time with his parents who he had lost several years ago,
We miss you, Uncle Dave.
