To David F. Taylor there were no strangers, only friends he hadn’t met yet.  An attorney by profession and a minister by calling, he died at home in Eighty Four, Pa., on February 9, 2020.  He was 69.

He loved people and they loved him.  Some people collect antiques, coins or stamps. He collected friends.   

Ever the optimist, when anyone asked how he was doing, he invariably responded, “too blessed to be stressed.” His upbeat attitude served him well in his battle against cancer. He was most proud of his personal relationship with God.

He loved assisting the underdog whether it meant educating HIV youths, orphans and the mentally challenged in Sierra Leone through his nonprofit corporation YouthNet Children Under the Sun or counseling clients through their legal problems. He served as president and Chief Executive Officer of YouthNet and through it helped establish and sponsor a school in Waterloo, Sierra Leone.

His willingness to lend a hand manifested itself early on when as a youth he and his childhood friend Lother Henderson helped neighbors with yard work. Once when they assisted a newly widowed neighbor, she offered treats or payment for their service but David insisted “that we accept nothing but her thanks.”

“Being a good neighbor meant helping. It’s what God wants,” Mr. Henderson recalled his lifelong friend saying.

A 1975 Duquesne Law School graduate, Mr. Taylor provided legal services and consultation to individuals, sole proprietors and corporations in the areas of construction litigation, commercial litigation and general civil litigation. During a more than 40-year career, he held a variety of positions including contract attorney for the Pennsylvania House Democratic Caucus, deputy chief counsel for the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board, was the first black law clerk for United States District Court in Pittsburgh, contract analyst for Northrop Corporation in Anaheim, CA., contract administrator for Rockwell International in Anaheim California, legal intern for Limbach Company in Pittsburgh and law clerk for the General State Authority in Harrisburg.

He also served on the Allegheny County Statutory Appeals Committee as well as Housing Authority hearing officer for the City of Pittsburgh.

He was former chairman of the Mission Committee at the Church of the Covenant in Washington.

He most recently attended West Ridge Church in Coraopolis.

In addition to practicing law, he traveled the globe, exploring different cultures and people. He loved travel, making friends wherever he went.  He first visited Africa in the 1970s and never lost touch with the continent or its people, traveling to Sierra Leone, Mali, the Ivory Coast and South Africa. He was also fond of Central and South America having spent three months in Ecuador in 2017 with his wife Lynda, preceded by visits to Costa Rica, Nicaragua and Mexico.

He is survived by his wife of 35 years, Lynda of Eighty Four; two brothers, Leo Taylor (Jean) of Chicago and Byron Taylor (Jeanette) of South Holland, IL; four sisters, Romaine Thomas of Tinley Park, IL; Chalotte (DeVelt) Crockett of Lynwood, IL; Carol King of Harrisburg; Renetta Barber of New Kensington, Westmoreland County, and numerous nieces and nephews.

Friends will be received from 10:00 A.M. until 11:00 A.M. the hour of a memorial service on Saturday-February 29, 2020 in the Warco-Falvo Funeral Home, Inc., Wilson at East Katherine Ave., Washington, S. Timothy Warco, Supervisor/Director, Susan Falvo Warco, Director, S. Timothy Warco II, Director.  In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to YouthNet Children Under the Sun, Inc. via the website www.fotwministries.org.  Condolences may be expressed at www.WarcoFalvoFuneralHome.com