David Bernard Winder's Obituary
David Bernard Winder
Aug 25, 1938 - May 4, 2025
David was born August 25, 1938 to Joe and Cleone Winder – the first of three sons. From the start David had a passion for numbers. By the time he was five he was adding multiple digit numbers in his head and had started multiplication. Thus began the life of this mathematical genius. He graduated East High School in 1955 and went on to Stanford, where he joined the Kappa Sigma Fraternity and played goalie on the soccer team. At Stanford he wanted to take classes from the best teacher in every subject, so they created a new cross-disciplinary major for him and he graduated with highest honors.
After Stanford, he served as an officer in the Navy for two years before joining Peat Marwick & Mitchell (later KPMG) where he became the youngest partner and eventually the highest tax partner nationally. He worked in Seattle and Washington, DC before returning to his hometown in 1990 to serve as managing partner of the Salt Lake office.
He married Sherry Dorsey (later divorced) and together they had one daughter, Jozelyn Davis who was a bright light in his life. In 1992 he married Jeralynn Topham Wright (Jerre) whom he called “Love”, immediately transitioning from being a father of one to a father of seven and eventually grandpa of twenty-five. He accepted and loved them as his own and they embraced and piled on their new Dad and Grandpa with boisterous love and excitement.
David was a faithful member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, demonstrating devotion to his Savior through his generosity, service, and love of family and fellow men. He had a unique ability to connect with and befriend people from all walks of life – from the landscaper working in his yard to Yuri Luzhkov – the Mayor of Moscow. He was frequently asked to contribute to important community projects because of his creative thinking and bridge-building skills.
David loved this beautiful world! He traveled to 116 countries, summited dozens of mountains, and maintained a disciplined exercise routine. He loved sports and was a junior tennis champion, MVP on Stanford’s soccer team, Oregon state badminton champion, marathoner, triathlete, and single handicap golfer. At age 76, he medaled in the Senior Games Iron Man competition. He had a season ski pass at Snow Basin until 2021 and led an annual family hike to the top of Ben Lomond Peak for the 4th of July.
He and Jerre loved taking children and grandchildren on grand adventures and introducing them to sights and cultures around the world. They hosted hundreds of world leaders through the Citizens for Diplomacy program and have beloved friends across the globe.
David was also an avid patron of the arts servings on many boards including the Utah Symphony and Opera (Board Chair), the Pacific Northwest Ballet (Chairman), Discovery Gateway, and Hale Center Theatre.
In 2000, Governor Mike Leavitt asked Dave to take early retirement to run the Utah Department of Economic Development in advance of the Winter Olympics and serve as special assistant to Governors Leavitt and Walker. He created the Utah Sports Commission and during the 2002 Olympics was instrumental in hosting each country’s officials. As Board Chair for Utah Retirement Systems and Public Employees Health Program, he oversaw billions of dollars of public funds. He served on over 32 other boards including Energy Solutions, Alsco, Salt Lake Convention and Visitors Bureau, Sundance Institute, Savage Construction, Utah Athletic Foundation, and Utah Housing Corporation.
After developing Alzheimer’s, Dave continued an active life with Jerre for many years before moving into Capitol Hill Memory Care. He stayed cheerful to the end, always happy and gracious with anyone he encountered.
He is survived by his wife Jeralynn and children Wallace A Wright III aka Tri (Connie), Shauna Sloan (Brent), Merrick Wright (Annmarie), Jenny Gillette (Steve), Devin Wright (Joslin), Laurel Smith, and Jozelyn Winder Davis (Peter) along with 25 grandchildren and 17 great grandchildren. Also surviving Dave are his brothers Don and Steve (Kumiko) and ex-wife Sherry Cook.
A celebration of life gathering will take place at their home at 490 16th Avenue on Friday May 9 from 6-8 pm. A funeral service will be held at 4 pm on Saturday May 10 at his ward building on 589 Eighteenth Avenue. Friends may call one hour before. In lieu of flowers, his family suggests contributions to the Utah Symphony Opera.
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