On November 29, 2019, David “Dave” Earl Pierce, 74, of Lompoc, CA passed away after a long and valiant battle to beat Multiple Myeloma. He is survived by his loving wife Julie Levy, who stood by him in thick and thin, and who he "loved like crazy"; devoted daughter Robin Jankiewicz upon whom he doted, her spouse Steve, and their bright and active grandkids Conan and Ajax whom Dave adored. His brothers Tom and Ron and sister Jean Lauwers, and their families, remained close to Dave. Dave was preceded in death by his parents and a former spouse, Phyllis (mother of Robin). He leaves behind an eclectic group of mourning friends and relatives who cherish the years that they knew him and have many fond memories.??Dave Pierce was a scientist through and through. Precise observation and experiments made him an expert in the kitchen, a collector of all kinds of bits and pieces, and a precision photographer of microscopic fossils and also of flowers, scenery, and people. He subscribed to scientific magazines and journals, in particular Nature, every issue of which he read closely. Up until when he went into the hospital, he was applying himself to finishing a research paper on vase-shaped microfossils which were in rocks he found in the Kingston Range of California.His geological passion involved study of early evolution on the path to intelligence. He had an abiding hope to discover a revolutionary specimen representing the first animals preserved in rock.??Dave was an avid walker/hiker. Until illness ruined his strength, he typically would hike ten miles at a time and much more when he was younger. He loved it when wife and friends hiked with him, but not many were capable of going the long distances.??He and Julie enjoyed traveling, from roughing it at campgrounds to luxuriating on cruise ships. They went everywhere from national parks of the west to cruises in the Mediterranean and Baltic Sea. They enjoyed nature trails and starry nights; going to concert and museums, and eating at buffets.??Dave was a modern day Renaissance Man: a humanist, environmentalist, and liberal political activist. He was instrumental in getting The Breeze bus transportation between Santa Maria and Lompoc, and he tried hard to get more frequent rail transportation between SB and Lompoc. He was on the Utility Commission and influential in getting Lompoc City Wi-Fi off the ground. He wrote numerous Forward View "op ed" pieces for the Lompoc Record. He was an unofficial advisor to numerous elected officials, helping prepare for meetings and researching information. He was a staunch anti-war protester and stood with the "Women in Black" at Ocean & H; and a supporter of "NOW" (National Organization for Women) in Lompoc.Additionally, he served on a Human Rights Commission in Lompoc, where compassionate communication methods were promoted.