David Luna, age 74, passed away painlessly in his sleep this past Tuesday, February 2, 2022. He was surrounded by his family and loved ones.
He was born in San Antonio, Texas on September 8, 1948, and lived with his parents Manuel and Susana Luna and his 4 siblings, Manuel Jr., Lola, Cecilia, and Michael. David joined the Air Force in 1969, and then was sent to Vietnam. He worked with the Component Repair Squadron (CRS), where he worked on electronics and camera gear. He always said CRS stood for “Can’t Remember Stuff”, even though his memory was always sharp. He was proud that he was able to be one of the first people to work on the SR-71 Blackbird. He served for 22 years and received multiple awards for valor and good conduct, as well as service medals for his time in Vietnam. While he was in Vietnam, his good friend Mark suggested that he pen pal with his relative. That pen pal would later become his wife. He married his wife, Myrna E. Luna, in 1971 and had two children, David Benjamin, “Benjy”, and Joey Luna. He always pursued his education, but he was often interrupted by TDYs, or Temporary Duties. After his years in the service, he finally earned his bachelor’s degree in Computer Science and then retired from the Air Force. He was able to use his knowledge from the Air Force and his knowledge from his degree in his computer support roles for Texas Parks and Wildlife, where he worked for 17 years.
David was known for sense of humor, as well as his love of the Dallas Cowboys and UT Football. He was well-loved by all those who knew him. Those he met in the Air Force remember him fondly, and even the nurses who helped him in his last few days said he was always kind and always remembered their names. He liked watching spaghetti westerns and detective movies, as well as watching Jeopardy, Wheel of Fortune, and Family Feud. His ability to correctly guess the answers on those game shows was always unmatched. He loved to visit and talk about his childhood home on Hazel Street in San Antonio. He enjoyed handing out candy to the neighborhood children on Halloween and complemented each child’s costume. He loved to take his family out to eat at Kreuz Market in Lockhart for barbecue and spoil everyone with good food. He enjoyed relaxing and eating pistachios and frozen grapes which he let his grandchildren steal from him. As a retiree, his main focus in life was spoiling his grandchildren, nephews, nieces, and friends.
He is survived by his wife Myrna, his son David, his daughter-in-law Minerva, his 4 grandchildren, his brother and sisters, and countless nieces and nephews. A public viewing was held on February 28, 2022, at Harrell Funeral Home in Kyle, Texas. The funeral followed at Santa Cruz Catholic Church on Tuesday, March 1st. Following the funeral, the burial was conducted at Live Oak Cemetery in Manchaca, Texas.
