Oak Harbor residents are saying farewell to a man who touched the lives of many in the community.

David Lura, known to many as Pastor David, passed away Jan. 25 after a fight with cancer. He was well known in town for his spiritual leadership, his humble volunteerism and his friendship.

“He always did what he could to make the community a little better place to live,” said Jim Slowik, the former mayor who counted Lura as a close friend and neighbor.

Lura retired as pastor of the First United Methodist Church in Oak Harbor in 2010 after serving for 23 years, which was an unusually long time and made him a well-known figure in the city. His brother, Duey, said Lura’s background as both an enlisted member of the Navy and a Reserve Navy chaplain meant he was a good fit for a Navy town.

Retirement didn’t slow Lura down, however. After knee surgery, he took up a unique hobby — pulling a cart around town to pick up trash and help out wherever he could. In an interview in 2013, he told the News-Times how he might stop by a senior living center to do landscaping, help organize shelves at a retail store or even do minor repairs for people during his travels. Bryan Stucky, owner of the Wallin Stucky Funeral Home, said Lura stopped by one day just to pull weeds.

Over the years, Lura took millions of steps and found a driver’s license, library cards, a car registration, three sets of car keys and a full book of food stamps. He also kept an eye out for graffiti and other issues that he would report to police.

“He paid attention to all the things that other people may not notice,” Slowik said.

Lura didn’t give up the pulpit either. He continued serving as a chaplain for both the Navy League of Oak Harbor and the Military Officers Association. He filled in as chaplain at several local churches. He provided invocations for countless events and meetings over the years.

Beth Munns, Navy League co-president, said he even helped out at the Navy base when tragedies occurred and members of the chaplain corps needed as many kind, steady voices as they could get.

“He was just a good soul,” she said. “If there was a need, he would see about it.”

Stucky said Lura was always there when the funeral home needed someone to officiate a funeral service for a family in mourning.

“He truly was Oak Harbor’s chaplain,” he said.

Lura was a “baseball nut,” his brother explained. He coached Little League baseball, was a volunteer coach for high school baseball and even started a co-ed softball league.

Duey explained that the three brothers grew up on a North Dakota farm. “Dave” was popular in high school and active both in the church and school sports.

“He was the biggest kid on the football team,” he said.

Duey said singing was a big part of their family’s life, a skill that served Lura well as a chaplain. Duey said he remembered that he and his brother would travel around the state and provide “pulpit supply” — guest ministry — at different churches. Inevitably, his brother would rope him into singing.

“He would put me on the spot every time,” Duey said fondly. “I knew what was coming, but I didn’t know what we would sing.”

In fact, Slowik described Lura as a “matchmaker” who saw potential in people and encouraged them to use their abilities to fill needs in the community.

Slowik said he’s known Lura for 30 years but that they became especially close in recent years, when he and his wife moved across the alley from Lura and his wife. Slowik was one of a half dozen people who regularly drove Lura to doctors’ appointments in the last year of his life.

Lura was in a great deal of pain from cancer, but he didn’t let it change who he was.

“He would say the most positive, inspiring things about people and life,” he said. “After a drive with him, I felt the better for it.”