David Andrew Snyder

1974 – 2020

David Andrew Snyder, son to Paul Snyder and Cheryl Mattoon, was born on September 25th 1974. He graduated from West Albany High School and continued into his college education. At an early age Dave fell in love with tennis, which he played throughout his childhood and into adulthood, varsity captain in high school. Camping as a child fed his passion for the outdoors.  Throughout his life, Dave spent countless hours at the Alsea River and tucked away in a cabin on the Gorge, never too far from the water. Over the past 20 years he began investing in his golf game and loved to hit the green with friends.
His respect for tennis led him to begin his career at the Y in Albany and then later to take a position working at a tennis shop. He dearly missed teaching tennis which brought him to work for Portland Parks and Recreation with the City of Portland. During his time with Portland Parks, Dave worked all over the city at a variety of facilities with a very diverse work experience. He adored the preschoolers and families at Hillside Community Center, embraced the opportunity to work at Southwest Community Center and run grad parties and cherished his time at Sellwood Community Center supporting staff and an ever-growing diverse camp program. His time in the sports office built valuable connections and taught him the foundation of Portland Parks. He spent many years at East Portland Community Center and Mt Scott Community Center where he mentored staff and built lasting relationships with the community. As a result of his funny, caring and good natured personality, he was loved by many.

During his time with Parks, he met his beloved wife Amanda Snyder. They brought two beautiful, high spirited boys into this world; Evan Snyder in 2016 and Ellis Snyder in 2018. This new chapter in his life showed the beautiful, happy and nurturing side of Dave that not everyone had gotten to see. He loved to take the boys’ on bike rides, cherished the moments of dancing around the living room and took great pride in getting the boys to chant “Go Blazers!” His energy brightened their lives on so many levels and they will dearly miss their daddy.

He was an entertainer from the start; learning to juggle and developing an obsession with stunts as a child, loved music of all varieties and had a passion to cook and grill. Constantly sharing photos of the food he made or the meals he prepared. He loved to try anything imaginable with his Traeger and you might even be getting a taste test around 1am if you were still around. His social gatherings always included everyone and he was constantly nurturing relationships with those surrounding him. His mood was contagious, and his uplifting personality attracted many.

David was a wonderful son, loving father, outrageously funny brother and a fantastic uncle. He will be remembered for how he made everyone feel valued and appreciated no matter what they brought to the table. Please take the opportunity to tell those around you that you love them. Focus on taking the time today to appreciate a coworker, compliment a friend and embrace your family. We all have our own struggles, but we are here to support one another. Let those closest to you in so they can take care of you when it’s needed.