David Scott, age 67, of Sioux Falls and formerly of Brookings, passed away Monday, September 16, 2019.  A time of fellowship will be held on Friday, September 20, 2019, from 10:00 -11:00 A.M. at Eidsness Funeral Home in Brookings.  Burial will follow at Fairview Cemetery in White, SD.

David Eugene Scott was born on February 11, 1952 in Springfield, Illinois to James Louis Scott and Betty Margaret Smith.  He died Monday, September 16, 2019, at Sanford Hospital in Sioux Falls, South Dakota at the age of 67 years, 7 months.

Betty moved her family to South Dakota when the boys were young.  David initially attended school at Sioux Falls School for the Disabled, then the National Jewish Hospital in Denver, before going to the State School and Hospital in Redfield in 1958 at the age of 6.  David left there in 1978 and moved to Brookings, where he received services from ADVANCE. After deciding he needed a change in his life, he moved to Sioux Falls in 2007 where he received services from LifeScape, and later DakotAbilities at the end of his life.

Advocating for the rights of people with disabilities was important to David.  He was a charter member of the Self-Advocacy Group at ADVANCE and participated in many state self-advocacy conferences.  He was elected to the State Board for People First in 1994 and served a year term. From 2003 to 2005, David was a member of the South Dakota Council on Developmental Disabilities.  He enjoyed traveling to Pierre for the quarterly meetings and was a respected member of the Council. He valued his independence and self-directing his own life.

David held jobs throughout the years in a variety of areas:  dishwashing, customer service, newspaper stuffing, light manufacturing, and assembly work.  David was always very proud of his work and was a valued employee.

David enjoyed cooking, drawing, reading the Argus Leader, visiting on the phone, and joking around with his friends and staff.  He was an avid pool player when he was younger, and even had a pool table in the living room of his apartment that doubled as a table when he had people over.  He loved giving flowers to his friends who were mothers on Mother's Day, even when money was tight.

He is survived by brother James Scott of Brookings, SD; brother Ronald Scott; and many cousins.  He was preceded in death by his parents and many aunts and uncles.