David Maus

David Lee Maus, age 66, of Wheaton, Minnesota passed away Tuesday, November 19, 2019 at his residence in Wheaton.

Funeral Services will be held Monday, November 25, 2019 at 11:30 a.m. at the Bainbridge Funeral Home in Wheaton.

Visitation will be held one hour prior to service time at the funeral home.

David was born on January 23, 1953 to Arthur and Ellen Maus; the middle child of five children. He attended a country grade school and high school in Chippewa County Minnesota. He left school when he was a junior, but did receive his GED later. He was placed in foster care for one year during his younger life. After foster care he tried to live back at home, but life back with his family caused more problems, which led to hospitalization at the State Hospital in Willmar from 1971 – 1972. He left the State Hospital to join the Navy. He was given an honorable medical discharge after four months. David said that with his mental illness he just could “not adapt to military life.” He returned to his parent’s home, bought a car, tried to work but again he struggled with his illness and had multiple stays at the State Hospital, mental health facilities and the St. Cloud Reformatory. During this time he was married for four months, he said his wife divorced him – not being able to cope with his mental health. David said that his placement at Prairie Community Services Parkview Home in Hancock was the beginning of his life having meaning again. He did try a couple of different foster homes in Lac qui Parle County, but returned to live in a Prairie Community Service Home in 2007. That is when he and Blackie, his cat, came became part of the Havenwood family. He said that he had “never had it better than he did here (Havenwood) and never wanted to leave.” Blackie was his companion for eighteen years, everyone was sad when Blackie passed away in 2018.

David was very active in the Havenwood and Broadway Industry communities. At home he was very willing to help out with many extras including being responsible to take the garbage out on Wednesdays, keeping the recycling organized and taking it to the street once a month for pick up. He was always there to help unload supplies when the van was full, and volunteered to help with the Food Truck pick up once a month. David enjoyed going for walks and bike rides on a daily basis. He loved to experiment with different forms of communication like walkie-talkies and cell phones, hoping to one day experience time travel. At Broadway Industries he enjoyed doing a variety of things from scrubbing floors to tagging clothes. He got along well with his co-workers and the staff and missed seeing them when he retired due to his medical condition. He enjoyed watching television shows, old time comedies like Andy Griffin and Westerns like Gun Smoke were his favorite. He also enjoyed Let’s Make a Deal and the Price is Right and would play along with staff. Traverse County Adult Drop In Center activities became very important to him. He enjoyed the group of people that he got to know there and they all cheered when the last bowling ball he threw was a strike!

In February 2019 David was diagnosed with cancer. He was able to be active in most of his favorite activities during those last nine months. David was cared for by the staff that considered him family and was there to say goodbye to him as he left this world. One of David’s friends said it best, “We were strangers when we met, but now I look forward to seeing you again. Always remember you were a good guy.” David will be greatly missed by many.