Obituary

“And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.”

David Taylor Cannon, a man of letters, faith, philosophy and unconditional love, transitioned to eternal life on April 7, 2024.

David was born at home on July 7, 1929, in Mount Morris, New York, to Charles and Helen (nee Taylor) Cannon at the onset of the Great Depression. The youngest of four children, David’s father worked as an engineer for the Delaware Lackawanna and Western Railroad. His mother held a Master of Science in Nursing Education from the University of Rochester and served as principal of the School of Nursing at Binghamton State Hospital.

David attended St. Paul’s School in Binghamton, New York, from fourth to twelfth grade. He treasured lifelong friendships from his school days and loved to regale his family with colorful stories of bygone times. He entered the seminary with his close friend Gerald Buckley. While Gerry became a respected priest, much to the gratitude of his children, David decided after several weeks—and soon after his mother needlepointed his prayerbook cover—that he was better called to the laity.

David began a lifelong career with the Eastman Kodak Company in Rochester, New York, at a time when Rochester was a company town and Kodak had created a corporate culture of innovation, excellence and camaraderie. David met Mary Ellen Cullen when she knocked on his front door while taking the parish census. They married in 1956 and immediately moved to Davenport, Iowa, where David worked in radiology sales.

Their children, Eileen and Tim, were born in Iowa. A short time later, the young family moved to Old Saybrook and then Guilford, Connecticut, where a lifelong love of the ocean, boating and the New England shoreline was born. While living in Guilford, David christened the family’s first boat, Valentine.

Subsequent career moves brought the family to Chicago and back and forth to Rochester and California twice. He retired from Eastman Kodak as regional manager of the Pacific Southern region.

Committed to community service, David was a member of the U.S. Junior Chamber (Jaycees) and president of the Whittier Chamber of Commerce and served on boards at Whittier College and The Salvation Army.

After Mary Ellen passed in 1996, David moved part-time to San Juan Capistrano, California, to be closer to his grandchildren and to return to the water, sailing Valentine II. He participated in home schooling his three youngest grandchildren, serving as their religion teacher. He took this ministry very seriously and conducted thoughtful and inspiring lessons.

David was a consummate lifelong learner. His bookshelves contained countless books on religion, philosophy, art, travel and culture. Many of the books contain his margin notes, which are a priceless gift to his grandchildren.

David married Marge White in 2004, bringing together two Kodak families who had known each other for many years. Their union brought Marge’s daughter Kathryn White (Sue Hobza), their children Grace and Mateo, and her son Tom White (deceased 2018) into the clan.

David is survived by his daughter Eileen (Stephen Paulin) and their children, Brendan (Britta) and Sarah. He is also survived by his son Tim (Sally) and their children, Nolan (Olivia), Erin (Matthew Gray and daughter Elizabeth), Keely (Andrew Dickson), Kathryn (Kendall Weir), Meghan (Kyle Tomasino) and Maura. David was a devoted uncle to his niece Lynda Cannon Greene, her family and a clan of Cullen and Cannon descendants.

Funeral Mass will be held at St. Edward the Confessor in Dana Point, California, on April 22 at 10 a.m. A luncheon celebration will be held afterward.

In lieu of flowers, the family suggests a donation in his memory to the Rochester Ataxia Foundation, formed by his Cullen nieces and nephew to fund research for a cure for ataxia, which has stricken two of their siblings.