50 Years a Michigan Man (and other anniversaries)

Today is homecoming at University of Michigan, and under different circumstances I might be on campus celebrating the 50th anniversary of my graduation from that august institution. The one that famously promised “an uncommon education for the common man.” That’s right, I received (earned!) my bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering in 1975, and I left town in 1976 with the EE master’s degree.

I won’t be at the festivities today. Won’t be one of those 50-year codgers stumbling or rolling into the end zone at halftime (do they still do that?). I’m not protesting anything by staying home, though I certainly could (should?) be. No I’ll be celebrating at home with my grandchildren. You see, my son Aaron graduated from Michigan in 2011, and he and his wife Lesley will be attending the game. I’ll be hanging out in the neighborhood with their kids, playing in the backyard, and side-eye watching the game on the patio tv.

Last year during homecoming, I was honored as a distinguished alumnus of the Electrical and Computer Engineering department, and that honor included giving a lecture in the department during the day, and attending a college of engineering awards dinner that night. The picture above is from that celebration. I can’t put my hands on any graduation pictures from 1975 right now, and I’m not about to go scarfing through dusty boxes at this hour to find one. My graduation occurred in the pre-digital era.

I was surprised to receive the award last year, because in 2016 I received the Distinguished Alumni Service Award from the entire College of Engineering. The picture below is from that event, with engineering dean Alec Gallimore (now provost at Duke University) on the left, and William Cosnowski from the CoE alumni board on the right. That was a really cool night, too.

So no, I don’t feel the need to be in Ann Arbor today. I’m looking forward to an even more special milestone: treating my four-and-two year-old grandkids to their first bike ride.

Forty Years Ago

In 1985, I was one year into the founding of Telecom Analysis Systems, the company I started in my basement with colleagues Steven Moore and Charles Simmons. Those were incredibly trying times, but the biggest event that year was the birth of my first child, Stacy Sheng Tarver. An incredibly special person, then and now.

Thirty Years Ago

In November 1995, my co-founders and I sold Telecom Analysis Systems, the company we started in the basement of my New Jersey home in 1984. That was a truly momentous event, because it laid the groundwork for everything I’ve accomplished in my post-corporate life. I was able to reconnect with family and community, and to try a host of new things I had yearned to do for years: writing, acting, singing, teaching, and advocating. What Steve, Charles and I accomplished is still rare today, and I hope to tell the story in a more compelling way in the time that I have left.

20 Years Ago

2005 was a year of the lowest lows and the highest highs. My dear sister Elizabeth Bernice Davis died that year after a long period of health challenges. She was an incredible person: a devoted mother, a great cook and hostess of family gatherings, a willing and trusted confidant and adviser, a world-class singer, a talented and compassionate registered nurse, a devoted wife. One of the things that buoyed me during the ups and downs of life and business was that I knew I could call my sister anytime and she would be there. We could laugh and joke with each other at any hour of the day or night. I still miss her dearly. Her death was what spurred me and Kishna to come home to Michigan in 2007 after my 31 years in New Jersey.

A few weeks after my sister died, I fulfilled a huge, longtime goal. Every since I saw The Wiz on Broadway in 1976, I had a strong desire to perform in that show. In early 2005, I had my chance – I was selected for a role in a local production of the musical at the Count Basie Theater in my then-hometown of Red Bank, New Jersey. I had never acted onstage, but I was not deterred. I auditioned, and I got the part – the eponymous role – The Wiz himself! I was in rehearsal for the role when my sister Bernice went into the hospital for the last time. I visited her there, and sang and danced some of my parts for her. That seemed to cheer her up. A few weeks later, she was gone, and I was onstage playing The Wiz.

Less than two weeks after my Wiz performance, I experienced one of the best nights of my life. I hosted a benefit concert at the spectacular new Two River Theater in Red Bank, New Jersey. My dear friend from Jamaica, Karen Smith, headlined the concert, which I titled “Jamaica on the Navesink,” the Navesink being the river that runs through Red Bank. I had the tremendous privilege of opening for Karen with a group of R&B all stars that we drew from the community, and my good friends Delores and Layonne Holmes and Debbie Vee (the group “Rain”) opened for ME! It was a spectacular night of music and community and friendship such as I haven’t experienced before or since. The memory of that night is all the more special given that Karen Smith left this world a few years ago. The concert is still posted on YouTube – you can watch it here.

Ten Years Ago

2015 was a busy year. I’d been back living in Michigan for eight years. My son Aaron had already attended and graduated from University of Michigan. I started teaching entrepreneurship courses at the U in 2013, but after seeing the utter devastation of places like Detroit and Flint, I decided to focus my attention on encouraging and facilitating business activity aimed at improving the quality of life in urban communities. In 2015, we incorporated the Urban Entrepreneurship Initiative to serve as an agent for improving urban communities through innovation and entrepreneurship. That same year, I launched a new course in the University of Michigan Center for Entrepreneurship. The course was called Urban Entrepreneurship Practicum, and the aim of the course was to acquaint students with the process of creating or enhancing an urban-focused business.

This Year – 2025

2025 is another milestone year. The “special topics” course I launched in 2015 as “Urban Entrepreneurship Practicum” is now a regular course in the U-M catalog, and is known as “Innovation for Urban Impact.” This summer, we at Urban Entrepreneurship Initiative, Inc. launched the Urban Innovator Platform, which creates an online community that provides essential information, inspiration, and connections for urban innovators and entrepreneurs. On the family front, my youngest Nadiyah got her driver license, and now takes herself to school. Now THAT is a milestone.

I’m grateful for the love and support I’ve received from many that has enabled me to see these milestones and to celebrate each of these anniversaries. After reflecting, one cannot help but think about what the coming years will bring. I’m terribly concerned and disappointed about many of the changes occurring in the world today, but I am a persistent fighter. The more adversity I encounter, the harder I fight. One of my New Jersey mentors. the Reverend Doctor Donald Warner, used to say: “Dave, the struggle goes from womb to tomb.” Amen, Dr. Warner. But damn, one gets tired of this sh!@ sometimes.