Dave was part of the furniture at the Regional Transfusion Centre at Southmead and subsequently Filton for all the 32 years that I worked there and the research that he led. The presence of a colleague and friend to all of us of such intelligence and driven scientific curiosity made it unique. His achievements are well known, his contribution to Transfusion Science both as a research scientist and teacher enormous but what is remarkable is how this was achieved by such an unassuming person. When a much-deserved honorary chair was muted I well remember how little interest he had in it. It was not what he was really about, it was the science and the community in which he worked. So many of us value that and the impact it had on our working lives and in many cases the direction of our careers. Thank you, Dave, you are a hero to the global Blood Transfusion community. You were a good friend and inspiring colleague to so many of us in Bristol. Tim Wallington.