David Lewis Barhydt was born in Hinsdale, Illinois, to George L. Barhydt and Berdine L. (Huebner) Barhydt on June 13, 1949. The family later moved to California settling in Orangevale, where Dave attended Faith Lutheran parochial school in Fair Oaks and graduated from Bella Vista High School in 1967. He attended American River College and received an AA Degree in accounting. While in college Dave took courses in auto body repair and decided that was the career he wanted to pursue. He worked for Mel Rapton Pontiac as a painter for several years.
Dave met his wife of 53 years, Laura (Smotherman) Barhydt in their church’s youth group while in high school. After their marriage in 1969 they purchased their first home in Orangevale. They enjoyed camping, hiking, fishing, horseback riding and exploring back roads in the Sierras, especially Nevada County. The love they developed for Nevada County led them to purchase bare land in the Garden Bar area where they built their homestead and raised their family. Dave did all of the construction of the homestead himself from the ground work to the finish with volunteer help from family and friends. This experience led to a career change when Dave discovered how much he enjoyed working with his backhoe. He received his contractor license and specialized in septic systems and ground preparation for new home construction in Nevada and Placer counties from 1987 until he retired.
Dave volunteered as coach for Bear River Little league and as a 4H leader with Meadowlarks. One of his fondest memories was getting the 4 H camp ready for campers each year. He also volunteered his time with Bear River FFA at the cook shack and driving students to competitions. He was a member of Higgins Diggins Lions Club and participated in the fundraising for and construction of the Higgins Lions Community Center. Dave served several years on the Nevada County Youth Ag Boosters and the Board for the Nevada County Resource Conservation District and was the current Board President.
Preserving agriculture in Nevada County was a top priority for Dave. He loved his cattle and taking care of the land. He was working with NRCS and Point Blue Conservation to improve the soil and wildlife habitat on the ranch and the family intends to continue his efforts. One of the things he enjoyed most was welcoming visitors to the ranch to enjoy McCourtney Roads Pumpkins and was sad when his illness made it necessary to close.
Dave served as a Board Member for the Nevada County Farm Bureau since the 1990’s and was past president. He was honored and proud to serve as the District 15 Director for the California Farm Bureau from 2017-2021.
Dave is survived by his wife Laura and children Lori Long (Sean) and Andy Barhydt (Julie) and grandchildren Owen, Luke, Eli, and Ava Long of Grass Valley and Daphne Green and Myles Barhydt of Grass Valley and brothers Mike Barhydt of Roseville and Rick Barhydt of Oregon.
A celebration of life will be held Saturday July 29th at 3:00 pm at 20267 McCourtney Road, Grass Valley. Please bring a dish to share and RSVP to (530)701-4857.
