David Michael Spooner

I was saddened to hear of David's passing. He was a wonderful colleague who always had a smile to share. He will be missed.

It was great pleasure meeting Dr. David Spooner in 2019 during my IRSIP. He was a great teacher and kind human being. We took this photo on his retirement day. Dr. David Spooner you'll be missed. May his soul rest in peace.

Gracias por esta comunicación, es muy lamentable esta noticia, solo agradezco a Dios por haber dado esa opurtunidad de conocerlo y compartido muchas experiencias sobre las papas silvestres.... Descanse en paz Dr. David. Oswaldo Gaspar

We were sad to hear about the passing of David Spooner. When our kids were younger and we lived nearby, they were good friends and we spent some fun times together. In 1999, when we bought a lot in a neighboring town and began construction of our new home, David came by to lend a hand. We truly liked the Spooner family and found David's to be a fun, laid-back and interesting person. Our hearts go out to the family, Ann, Lisa and Dan. Hoping that happy memories of time spent together will get you through this tough time. -David and Carla McKinney and family

Sincere Sympathies: Current and past members of The International Potato Center (CIP), Lima, Peru, friends and colleagues of David Spooner, deeply regret his departure and express sincere condolences to his family and friends. David Spooner, worldwide known Taxonomist, devoted more than 30 years to study the taxonomy and genetic diversity of potatoes. As such, David was recognized as CIP's Genebank key partner, generating multiple research projects, and training new experts. Colleagues and pupils had the honor to learn from his expertise and professionalism but also had the privilege to have him as a mentor, colleague and friend. His legacy is abundant, and he will be missed. From 1998, David Spooner, with exemplary dedication, participated and led multiple studies on potato germplasm diversity in Peru and other Andean counties. From 2000 to 2008, he visited CIP annually, working enthusiastically on different projects in his areas of expertise. He trained several outstanding taxonomists in Peru and other Latin American countries. His studies made possible to demonstrate that the potato originated in the Altiplano area. All these achievements are highly appreciated by the potato scientific and agricultural community especially in Latin America. The extraordinary scientific career of David Spooner generated multiple books and scientific articles that guide current research, illustrating and valuing the genetic diversity of potatoes, and other plant species. His scientific legacy will continue to serve as inspiration for current and future potato taxonomists and biodiversity researchers. David will always be present in our hearts and memories for his sincere appreciation and support to CIP, his respect for the Andean culture, especially the Peruvian, his commitment to biodiversity conservation, his genuine interest and generosity in training scientists and supporting farmers in their efforts to protect biodiversity; as well as recalling happy friendship moments with him. "Our immense thanks and appreciation forever, dearest friend David" Your CIP’s friends: W. Roca, A. Salas, F. Rodriguez, M. Ames, A. Del Rio, R. Gomez, J. Soto, E. Rojas, I. Manrique, A. Panta, G. Carpio, V. Azevedo, V. Infantas, L. Salinas, O. Ortiz.

Met Dave in graduate school at Ohio State in the early 1980’s… One of the nicest people around! Very gracious, friendly and down-to-earth…