David Louis Malti

David Louis Malti, beloved husband, father, grandfather, brother and uncle born on October 28, 1949 to William and Freda (Kennedy) Malti, died Friday, November 13 unexpectedly. He was 71.

Dave is survived by his wife, Shirley Lee (Eldridge) Malti, and his two sons: David J. Malti, his wife, Wendy (Schwarz), and their children, Regan and Cameron Grossman, and Brad C Malti, his wife, Kristine (Milos) and their son, Tyler. Additionally, he is survived by the entire extended Malti family: Peggy, Jerry, Joyce, Ron, and several nieces and nephews. He was predeceased by William and Nancy.

Dave graduated from Honesdale High School in 1969. He joined the Army in October 1970 at Fort Polk, LA. He then had careers at Kinsman’s, Palmer’s, Schwarz’s, Moore’s and Callicoon Supply before eventually retiring from Lindsey Equipment in 2018.

What meant the most to Dave was spending time with the love of his life, Shirley. They were inseparable. They met when Shirley’s mom’s car broke down. She walked to Snow’s Garage, and Dave asked her to go on a date while she was waiting for help. Their first date was at the Capitol Theater. They were married April 17, 1971 at the Episcopal Church and their reception was at the Alerts Fire Hall. Dave and Shirley went to Florida on their honeymoon, driving a GTO that earned him a speeding ticket for the fee of $37.50 and before breaking down. 

Dave was a great fan of old cars and racecars; he raced at Wayne County Fair, Beach Lake and Mocatek with his 57 Chevy #92. He loved restoring tractors, playing Hozze or any card game, hunting, fishing, tinkering, camping, wheeling and dealing, eating, drinking Captain and coke, visiting garage sales, reading cowboy/western books, playing cornhole, shooting pool, being a member of the Fraternal Order of Eagles, throwing the ball to his faithful dog, Marlee, having picnics, spending time with his sons on any project (and preaching about safety measures), taking rides on his side-by-side, working hard and telling stories. 

He adored his family and would always drop whatever he was doing to help any of them out. There was no one more generous; he never asked for anything in return. If he didn’t tease you, he didn’t like you. He was famous for saying to his wife, daughter-in-laws, sisters-in-law and nieces, “Did you just leave the beauty parlor?” He always told his three grandsons, “If a woman hugs you too long, she’s reachin’ for your wallet.” He would tell anyone he was doing business with to “sharpen your pencil, I ain’t no city slicker.” 

He will be greatly missed by his whole family and his lifelong friends for his unselfish spirit and sense of humor. Everyone who knew him appreciated his kind heart and big smile. He was never too busy to visit, talk, lend a helping hand or give you a nickname. He had several of his own, depending on how you knew him: Haney, Sanford, Uncle Cooter... He was the world’s best husband, dad, poppy and father-in-law.

The family held a private funeral service on November 20. They are very grateful to Hessling’s Funeral Home and Edward Howell for their kind assistance in laying Dave to rest. He will be cremated. In lieu of flowers, please send donations to the Wayne County Public Library as Dave frequently visited there. Condolences can be mailed to Malti Family 412 Eighmy Rd., Honesdale, PA. The family would like to acknowledge with sincere, deepest heartfelt appreciation the ambulance crew and staff at Wayne Memorial Emergency Room for their amazing efforts to keep Dave with us. We know you did all you could. In the summer, the family would like to host a memorial picnic to celebrate Dave’s life on the property he was so proud of. His simple daily pleasure was just enjoying the view.

A famous Dave Malti trait was to repeat himself, so please read this obituary twice.