Obituary of David O Tyson

David Otto Tyson August 5th, 1925 to August 17th, 2009 Basking Ridge, New Jersey David Otto Tyson, journalist, husband of the late Yvonne Lorgnie Tyson, passed away quietly the afternoon of August 17th after a long illness. David Tyson was born in New York City to Reba and Levering Tyson, an educator, who, in addition to a long career associated with Columbia University, served as President of Muhlenberg College. David attended the Horace Mann School in New York and, subsequently, the Kent School, in Kent, Connecticut. He graduated from Muhlenberg College in Allentown, Pennsylvania and obtained a master's degree in history from Columbia University. Entering the Navy Officer Training Program while at Muhlenberg College, David was called to active duty during the Korean War. Prior to his service in the Korean War, he worked as a journalist in Washington, DC where he met and married his beloved wife, Yvonne Lorgnie, of Paris, France. Their first two years of married life were spent in Hawaii where he was stationed at Pearl Harbor. He retired from the Navy as a Lieutenant. The Tysons returned to New York City and, after the birth of their first son, moved to Morris County, New Jersey, soon settling in Mendham, where the family remained for many years. David was a lifelong Democrat and was active in the Democratic Party of Morris County. David spent most of his career in journalism. After working as a wire service reporter for the Associated Press in Newark, he subsequently specialized in writing for and editing financial publications. He worked briefly in the marketing department of Lehman Brothers in the 1970s but returned to "pure journalism" after a short period of time. In 1989, after 25 years of service, he retired from his position as the American Banker's Associate Editor. He was a staunch defender of the rights of free speech and a free press in America, and was proud of his journalistic ethics. Throughout his life David remained an active member of the alumni organizations of Muhlenberg College and Columbia University. He was a devoted Columbia University football fan, which is a testimony to his generally optimistic nature. He rarely missed a home game. A member of the Coffee House, the Mendham Golf and Tennis Club, David joined the Essex Hunt Club, to offer his sons the opportunity to play ice hockey. He and Yvonne shared a life-long passion for travel and learning and kept fit with frequent friendly rounds of tennis. David's well-documented sense of humor was coupled with a strong sense of humility. Throughout their youths, David and his siblings James Levering Tyson and Jane Tyson Clement passed summers in Bay Head, New Jersey, in a home their parents built the year David was born. Subsequently, David and Yvonne took great delight in the fact that the Bay Head house continued to provide a family retreat for the Tyson children, grandchildren and cousins. It is primarily this legacy which provides the framework for interweaving the lives and stories of the new generation of Tysons into those who have preceded them. David Tyson is survived by his two sons, Geoffrey L. Tyson, M.D. of Vancouver, Washington and Alan L. Tyson of Morristown, New Jersey, as well as Donna B. Tyson, his daughter-in-law, and five grandchildren, Melissa, Grant, Reed, Reba, and Jean Yvonne Tyson. In addition to his many nieces and nephews, sisters-in-law Elizabeth Tyson of Meadow Lakes, New Jersey, Marie-Therese Vercken and Jaqueline Lorgnie of Neuilly, France and Magdeline Touchot of Paris, France remember him fondly. He will be missed greatly. The family requests that any remembrances be made to Muhlenberg College in David's name. A celebration of David's life will be held at 10 a.m. on October 3 at the First Presbyterian Church, 2 Lee's Hill Road, New Vernon, N.J."