David Jens Meilstrup

david meilstrup
David Jens Meilstrup Loyal and loving husband of Kristi Bangerter Meilstrup and amazing father of Siena, Ben, Claire and Andrew passed away on September 7, 2015 from a sudden cardiac arrest. He was a Spartan athlete, successful professional, rock & roll bass player, a man of faith, and all-around fun guy; the type of man every man should be. His passing leaves an enormous hole in our lives, yet we remain grateful for his 38 years here on earth. We rejoice in the knowledge that we will be with him again someday.

Dave was born in Columbia, Missouri, the 4th child of Jon and Susan Meilstrup, while his Dad was in a Radiology Residency. His parents soon discovered Dave was a unique child, as Mom would find him helping other little kids when they got hurt on the playground or putting his arm around his siblings, or working longer or harder than the other kids. When Dave was 3, his family moved to Silver Spring, Maryland where he grew up, started school (reluctantly), and started his life-long love of baseball. His Jr. and Sr. High School years were spent in Hershey, Pennsylvania, where he also enjoyed playing basketball. He served a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the Rome Italy Mission where he grew to love the Italian people, as well as the great food there. His college years were spent at Brigham Young University where he received a Master's degree in Accountancy, which led to a career as a Forensic Accountant. He worked hard in college, but that didn't stop him from developing many, many friendships and organizing plenty of social events.

He married the love of his life, Kristi, on September 6, 2003. They had 12 wonderful years together raising their children in Virginia and traveling to many enjoyable places. Many trips involved a Spartan race, and he was on his way to completing his third trifecta, an amazing achievement. His children enjoyed following their Dad by also running in the races. On multiple occasions he would slow his pace to help those he was running with. Even with his competitive spirit, he always had a heart to help.

Dave was loved and admired by all who knew him, especially by his adoring children and wife. He was a hard worker, excelled in his career and was always ready to serve others in his church and community. One friend summed it up by saying, "You may not know Dave, but if you did you would love him."

Funeral Home:

Money & King Funeral Home

171 W. Maple Ave.

Vienna, VA

US 22180

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Memories Timeline

Guestbook

  1. Kristi and Children: my love and prayers go out to you all. I loved my conversations with Dave. He was as fine a man as I have ever met. Please know that we are all here for you.

  2. Kristi and Children: my love and prayers go out to you all. I loved my conversations with Dave. He was as fine a man as I have ever met. Please know that we are all here for you.

  3. A fantastic and beautiful human being. His was the epitome of a well-lived life. He was always compassionate, kind, helpful and set an example for many on how to win at life. You’ll be missed my friend. My heart and thoughts go out to Kristi and the kids. I may have never had the pleasure of meeting y’all, but if you ever need anything at all, please don’t hesitate to lean on us. Dave was just one of those people that any friend of his was naturally a friend of yours – so much more so with his immediate family.

  4. Kristi I am so very sorry for the loss of your husband. James has made it abundantly clear what an amazing man he was. He will always be looking down over you and your kids lovingly. Remember always that our time here is very short and before you know it you will be in his arms again never to be parted because you have made those covenants together for your eternal family. Huge hugs to you.

  5. We are so sorry for your loss. We hope you will find comfort in the wonderful memories you have and in the knowledge that you are an eternal family.

  6. Dave Meilstrup will be greatly missed! We have such great memories of spending a week at the beach with the Meilstrup family and attending many rock concert when Dave performed!! Our hearts are sadden by his passing! He was a great guy!

  7. My deepest sympathy for you and your family. Although I never met Dave, from everything I have read about him and all those amazing pictures I have seen, he must have been an amazing man. I am so sorry for your loss, my heart truly grieves with yours and your families. You guys are in our thoughts and prayers. May god help to ease your heartaches.

  8. We miss our friend and brother, Dave, and our talks about Denmark, his ancestral heritage. His namesake, Jens Meilstrup, lives on, and will carry forth the Good Meilstrup name!

  9. We didn’t know Dave well, but what we knew of him was very good. And what a wonderful family he raised and will continue to influence. We look forward to getting to know your family better and supporting you however we can.

  10. Dave loved manual labor. On multiple occasions I mentioned that I couldn’t hang out until I finished farm or house projects. He always jumped in to help the process finish quicker. We shared a love of music and sports and had a memorable rivalry in the basement table tennis. I’ll miss him.

  11. Dave, I will miss sharing the stage with you. Such fond memories of great shows, and the memories made rehearsing in your basement and after shows. Most importantly, I will always be impressed with your dedication to serving others without being asked – a true Christlike characteristic. To Kristi – the band will always be here for you, for anything you need, as we know Dave would do the same for any of us, if the roles were reversed. May you find peace in the coming months and years.

  12. Dave, my dear friend, as we used to say during our mission here in Italy, love and friendship are made to last for eternity. Thank you, my friend, for the way you served me and my family in such a time of grief, for the spirit you shared and the laughters. I will never forget you. To Kristi…I wish you could feel our love and hug from here. You and your children will be always welcome with love at our home, whenever you want. May God bless all of you with the strength and the peace you need.

  13. Every Sunday we admired Dave and Kristi show so much love for their kids. They were an exemplary couple. In the Lord’s plan “men are that they might have joy”. And I know that families will be united in this joy.

  14. Dave – you will be missed and remembered always. Kristi – may his memory and love help you and the kids through this difficult time. Stay Spartan strong.

  15. I served at the same time as Dave, although I didn’t get to know him too well. From the wonderful tributes that have been shared I wish I had had the opportunity to know him better. He’s left a beautiful legacy. My thoughts and prayers are with you.

  16. So long for now, David. You brought so much joy to this place we call earth. Looking forward to rubbing shoulders with you again in the eternities! Love you and your beautiful family. With a prayer in my heart and a song in my soul…until we meet again, farewell! Love, Sis Almoney. aka Deborah Almoney

  17. My dearest friend, you’ll be always in my heart. You touched my life in so many ways. I’ll never forget what we shared, what we learned, what we wrote in our crazy letters, our smiles and tears. You are a special man! Kristi, hope his love will be always felt by you and your beautiful children, in every day of your life! I can only send you a big hug, from here! But you are all in my heart and in my prayers! What a blessing, to know him!

  18. So very sad to hear of David’s sudden passing. Sending much love to Susan and family. David and his sweet family have been and will be in ours prayers.

  19. I am so sad about Dave’s passing. I have a lot of fond memories of him from our teen years in Hershey. You are all in my thoughts.

  20. I knew Dave from the Rome Mission. We served at the same time, though never together. But I did know him. My thoughts and prayers are with his family. What a beautifully written obituary. Love from Texas.

  21. My prayers go out to Kristi and her children. I know this is a tough time, as it has been one for me as well. I’ll admit I didn’t know Dave as well as I’d have liked to, but living on opposite ends of the country does that. I don’t remember very much about him, but I love what I do remember. It’s still hard for me to accept that he’s gone, but I know he’s in a better place, and that he and Grandpa Meilstrup are together again. I know Dave would want us to stay strong and push through this. Again, my prayers go out to Kristi and her children, along with the rest of the family.

  22. Sue, Kristi and the Meilstrup Family, You are all in our thoughts and prayers. We knew David as one of the nicest, most polite teenagers in our neighborhood. He was a teen our younger kids looked up to. A great example for them, as a neighbor having a young man like David is such a bonus. We and our children were very fortunate. My The Lord give you strength through this tough time. God Bless all of you.

  23. God promises to reunite us with our dead loved ones. He mentions the Earth will be restored to paradise conditions with an abundance of peace. God never lies (ISA 33:24).

  24. I have fond memories with David when we played basketball together at the Harrisburg Pennsylvania Stake basketball tournaments. He was always an unselfish player who could shoot. I was from the Millersburg Branch and he was from the Hershey Ward, but with low numbers of youth for a basketball team, they combined our units for the basketball tournament. He was also a true friend who I would spend time with at Stake youth activities. I loved having his father Jon Meilstrup as our stake president and later stake patriarch! My sister Kathleen Lentz Spendlove recently saw David’s mother Susan, who told her about David’s death. I’m confident David is serving faithfully in the spirit world alongside his father. He will be missed. My heartfelt condolences to his family.


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