Dave Warfel lived the life he was made for. His parents, Nancy and Lee, were members of the local volunteer fire company, and Lee served as a volunteer forest fire warden for the Pennsylvania Bureau of Forestry. They demonstrated a life of service and commitment to their community, and it was natural for Dave to follow in their footsteps.

A member of multiple local fire companies, Dave’s heart was in the service of wildland fire. As a member of his dad’s warden crew, he found his true passion. Dave grew up on a farm and loved the outdoors. The combination of being in nature and fighting fire appealed to him.

In 1987, after high school graduation, Dave pursued a fire position in the Bureau of Forestry as a seasonal forest fire patrolman. He divided his time between this seasonal position and the local steel mill. In 1998, he took a seasonal position as an equipment operator. Since all field positions are expected to fight wildfire, he was still able to pursue his passion. In 2008, he was promoted to a full-time position as an equipment operator, and then to forest maintenance supervisor, overseeing a maintenance crew in charge of road and facility maintenance.

As a member of Pennsylvania’s Type II wildfire crews, Dave took many trips to the western states, where he served first as a crew member, then squad boss, and eventually a crew boss on 2–3-week assignments, assisting with federal efforts in wildfire suppression. He was nationally qualified as a task force leader, heavy equipment boss, incident commander Type IV, and engine boss. He also qualified as a firing boss for ignitions on prescribed fires.

At the time of his passing, Dave was actively serving as a member of the Halifax Volunteer Fire Company and as chief of the Carsonville Fire Company. He earned a fire science degree from Harrisburg Area Community College. Dave was a leader to those he worked with, a mentor, and a teacher. He taught hundreds of students in both wildland and structural fire, taught operators and maintenance employees, and served as a role model for his employees and students. He did this with humility, humor, and patience. As one of his best friends and coworkers, Joe Walker, said, “He loved to teach fire, he loved to fight fire, and he loved to teach while on a fire.”

Dave passed away on May 29, 2025, at the Bureau of Forestry’s Wildland Fire Academy, doing what he loved most, teaching and instructing. He is one of the lucky few who figured out exactly who he was and what he wanted to do and pursued it with passion. His family, coworkers, and community miss him tremendously.