Dearly beloved, we’re gathered here today to mourn the loss of my dear stepfather, David Treadwell. Many of you knew him as a loving friend, landscaper, neighbor, or all-around nice guy involved in the community. As for me, my stepfather and I got along just fine, but he didn’t enter my life until later into my adult years when my mom remarried after my biological father left us to become the storm chaser in Cape Disappointment using only a Motorola Razr. He accidentally cast himself out at sea, may his adventurous spirit rest in peace.
If I’ve taken anything away from my stepfather’s untimely demise and my biological father’s creative endeavors, it’s that life is too short. That’s why I’ve pursued my own creative dreams and started a podcast called “Welcome to the O.C., Rashida Jones”, where each episode my co-host and I chat with a guest comedian about an episode of The O.C. and try to relate it back to actress Rashida Jones, who was famously not in The O.C.
I know it seems inappropriate to bring this up in my stepfather’s eulogy, but he was a generous person so let’s take solace in the fact that he would have allowed this. Also, we weren’t particularly close and I need practice talking to a live audience—more on that later.
It seems like just yesterday David and I were sitting together on the back patio, sipping coffee together, taking in the morning nature. Dave was so intelligent he could talk about anything, just like my show. Despite the niche-sounding title, it’s a pretty solid launching pad for all kinds of nonsequiturs, so there’s something for everyone. When you get the chance, please subscribe!
I’ll never forget the time that Dave called me while on the job because he was about to cut a tree down and he wanted to know if he could figure out the area of the tree if he knew the circumference. I told him if he listened to episode 47 of the pod with standup comic Greg Owens, he would have heard the “What Did You Watch In High School” segment where we dig into the SAT Math section! I guess our brand is pretty silly, so I don’t blame Dave for telling me he’ll just Google it then hanging up. That being said, it’s a fun radio show to listen to during the work commute.
And how can I talk about Dave without bringing up the neighborhood holiday decoration contest? He loved to get into the holiday spirit and bring the community together. Making people feel connected was important to him, so I think it would mean a lot to him to continue connecting with people by following us on Twitter at @RashidaOC and Instagram @WelcomeToTheOC_Rashida.
As hard as the loss is, I suppose we were somewhat fortunate in knowing the end was near. When I visited him on those final days, on his deathbed, he spoke with vocal fry. That’s usually pretty frowned upon in audio playback, and since he wasn’t even speaking into a mic that’s when I knew it was bad.
In honor of my stepdad Dave’s memory, we’re starting a scholarship for students attending a 4-year university for landscape architecture and/or recording arts & sciences. We’ll be sending out links where you can donate to the GoFundMe. There will also be a link to our Patreon, where you can support my free podcast and also get access to exclusive content!
Following the services here—where you can use the promo-code WELCOMERASHIDA for buy-one-get-one urns—we will be gathering at our home where beverages and refreshments will be provided.
If you cannot make it, thank you for coming and please don’t to forget to subscribe and give us a 5-star rating! We took a brief hiatus because we’re on summer vacation, but next month we’ll be back with new episodes every Wednesday.
Rest in peace, Dave. We’ll miss you dearly.