After belonging to three other Rotary clubs, David Oellerich was no stranger to new member bios. Nevertheless, David said he put in 1,000 hours preparing his 10-minute PowerPoint presentation!
David was born in Virginia and subsequently lived in Atlanta and Sarasota. A major departure was the family's move to South Bend and their first exposure to snow. Next came Middleton, Ohio, where David played high school football--an experience he describes as fantastic. He then attended Centre College, a liberal arts school in Danville, Kentucky, again playing football. He says he enjoyed school to the point he was "asked to move on" by both the school and his dad.
After leaving school David worked in the oil fields and in a variety of construction jobs. Then he met Mary Ellen Griffen (daughter of Frankfort Rotarian Ward Griffen), who inspired him to return to school--the University of Florida School of Construction. In his personal life David and Mary Ellen ("Minnie") have been married 40 years and have raised three daughters. Professionally David has spent 40 years in the construction business, mostly as the owner of a construction company in Tampa.
David and Minnie split their time between Tampa and their home at Lower Herring Lake. David is involved in a variety of local charities, including BACN and Friends of the Betsie Valley Trail.