Born Dec. 20, 1955
Fall River, Massachusetts
Died June 18, 2023
Huntington, Vermont
Details of services
A memorial service for David will be held on September 9 at 1 p.m. at Rock Point Center, 20 Rock Point Road, Burlington.
In lieu of flowers, a donation in any amount may be made to his granddaughter Harper’s college fund. Please contact Maria Moy-Santos moysantosm@gmail.com for information.
David Manuel Santos, 67, of Huntington, died unexpectedly on June 18, 2023 in Huntington, Vermont. David was born December 20, 1955 in Fall River, Massachusetts, the only child of Manuel and “Bella” (Balbina) Santos. David’s father served in the Army in WWII and was later a postal worker on the overnight mail train from Providence to New York. He also played several musical instruments and loved to cook. He often took Bella and David on “mystery drives,” taking a seemingly random route and eventually ending up somewhere fun, typically an ice cream stand at one of the many creameries that still existed at that time. David continued this tradition. David’s mother was a gifted seamstress who worked until she retired in a textile factory in Fall River. She attended church every day. Both were hardworking, first generation Americans whose parents were from the Açores. David was an altar boy until his father’s unexpected death when David was twelve. David went to Fall River Catholic schools from Kindergarten through high school, graduating from Bishop Connolly in 1973. David’s working class, Catholic, Fall River roots remained central to his identity, though he became an atheist. At 17, during the Vietnam war, following in his father’s footsteps, he voluntarily enlisted in the U.S. Army. After his Army service, he served in the National Guard.
David attended Northeastern University, working nights as a security guard. One of his Northeastern co-ops was with Rhode Island Legal Services which inspired him to become a civil legal services lawyer and was where he met his first wife and mother of his children, Lillian Moy. David graduated from Emory University School of Law in 1984 having “booked” Administrative Law. His first job as a lawyer was with Georgia Legal Services. He loved to talk about his experiences circuit riding to rural counties and rural life in Georgia, particularly the unparalleled peaches. David went on to work providing civil legal services for poor people until his death, working in turn for Georgia Legal Services (Milledgeville); Legal Assistance of Central Massachusetts (Fitchburg); Northeast New Jersey Legal Services (Patterson); Western Mass Legal Services (Springfield), and, finally, Legal Services Vermont. He was a career legal services lawyer, helping thousands of poor people protect their rights to housing, income, and safety.
David loved cooking for his daughters, Katie Moy Mostris and Maria Moy-Santos, and taking them camping, kayaking, and canoeing. They remember the hundreds of miles he drove each week to be with them during their childhood and beyond.
David met his love, Rachel, in 2002 while working at Legal Services Vermont. They began living together in September 2003 in Richmond, moved in 2005 to Huntington, and married in March 2015, continuing to live in Huntington. In 2017, they both became first-time homebuyers, purchasing the Huntington home they had rented since 2005. In 2006, Rachel and David realized David’s lifelong dream of travelling to the Açores.
David loved meeting new people and striking up conversations on a wide variety of topics. His knowledge was vast, with no bit of information too trivial to remember. He had a big laugh and a generous heart as well as a wicked, but not mean-spirited, sarcastic streak. He relished the finer things in life. His plans for how he would spend his millions when he won the lottery always included the many things he would do and buy for others. He had a gift for making people, even overly serious ones like Rachel, laugh.
David demonstrated his love through service: making coffee every morning, researching and cooking delicious meals, running errands, doing dishes, and bringing home treats. He loved to cook, especially for people. He loved gardening vegetables. He was the sappiest man in the world, loving to read and watch romantic comedies, including the Hallmark and Lifetime channels, and especially Christmas specials. One of his favorite movies was Miracle on 54th Street. He was an equally massive fan of Harry Potter and Bernard Cornwall. He also loved war movies, especially those that focused on camaraderie. His favorite vacation spot was the Southeastern Massachusetts shore, just south of Fall River where David and Rachel planned to spend another summer vacation this year.
David is survived by his wife, Rachel Batterson; by his two daughters, Katie Moy Mostris and Maria Moy-Santos; by his four-year-old granddaughter, Harper Wells; and by his many friends.
A memorial service for David will be held on September 9 at 1 p.m. at Rock Point Center, 20 Rock Point Road, Burlington.
In lieu of flowers, a donation in any amount may be made to his granddaughter Harper’s college fund. Please contact Maria Moy-Santos moysantosm@gmail.com for information.
