David Linus Laake, 77, Knoxville

David Linus Laake, 77, of Knoxville, Tenn., died on March 5, 2024.

Dave was born in Ferdinand to Emil Laake and Amelia Ebert Laake.

He graduated from St. Ferdinand High School in the Class of 1964. He then studied at St. Joseph’s College in Rensselaer, Ind., where he received a Bachelor of Arts in Economics. Following that, he earned a degree in Industrial Engineering from Purdue University.

In 1970, he married Aline Fleck. They raised three daughters, and his family and faith became his world. Choosing to leave the corporate world, he moved his family to Tennessee in 1979, where he started a printing business.

He was a member of Holy Family Catholic Church of Brentwood until moving to Knoxville in 2023, where he became a member of Immaculate Conception Catholic Church.

He was diagnosed with Primary Progressive Aphasia in 2018. Learning that he would eventually lose his ability to speak, he found strength in his faith.

He passed peacefully at home, surrounded by his wife and girls.

Dave is preceded in death by his parents, Emil and Amelia Laake and his younger brother, Patrick (Cathy) Laake.

He is survived by his wife of 53 years, Aline, and their three daughters, Melinda Laake of Mount Pleasant, S.C., Brenda (Randy) Burdette of Tallahassee, Fla., and Amanda (James) Calloway of Knoxville, Tenn. He is also survived by his five grandchildren, Jake and Ben Burdette, Caroline, Matthew, and Andrew Calloway, brother Dennis (Kathy) Laake, and sisters Bernita (Harvey) Berger and Eileen (Harold) Wright.

Visitation with the family will take place on Saturday, March 16, 2024, at 11 a.m. ET at Immaculate Conception Catholic Church in Knoxville, Tenn., with a Funeral Mass at noon.