Obituary of David James Vogler

David James Vogler, 69, died at home on March 31, 2011. Raised in Dedham, David moved to Orlando, Florida when his parents retired there, graduating from Boone High School and the University of Florida. He received a PhD in political science from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and joined the staff at Wheaton College in 1969, where he remained on the faculty until his retirement last June. Early in his career, David studied American government, in particular, Congress, and wrote his PhD thesis on Congressional conference committees. His thesis was later published by Northwestern University Press and entitled The Third House. In 1976, he was named a Congressional Fellow and spent a sabbatical year in Washington, D.C. Part of the fellowship involved serving as an intern in a Congressional office and David chose to spend his time in Duxbury’s 10th Congressional office, which was held at that time by Gerry Studds. In addition to his thesis, David was the author of many other books, including The Politics of Congress, which was published in multiple editions and Power, Politics and Participation, which was used in college level introductory political science classes. For many years, David was active in Duxbury town politics, serving on the Town By-law Study Committee, Finance Committee (one year as chair), Public Works Study Committee (chair), Board of Selectman (2 terms), and Conservation Commission. In later years, David developed an interest in all things Italian and was awarded the Keiter chair from Wheaton College, which enabled him to continue his studies in Florence, Italy during his sabbatical year in 1998-9. At the time of his death, he was completing a manuscript based upon his research, parts of which have been published as separate articles and/or given as presentations at academic conferences. Recently, he translated one of his articles into Italian for publication as part of a reader edited by a professor at the University of Milan. His final manuscript is being compiled for publication as an e-book by a professor at the University of Florence and will be the subject of a seminar to be given there later this month. David will be remembered for his warm sense of humor, his passion for his work, his empathy for his students and, especially, his bread-making. He is survived by his wife, Alice and son, William, both of Duxbury, his sister, Nancey Reagan and her husband, Hal, of Valrico, Florida, his brother, William and his wife, Alice, of Bear Creek, North Carolina, his mother-in-law, Barbara Marshall, of Lake Forest, Illinois, his brother and sister-in-law, Bucky and Tracy Marshall, of Cave Creek, AZ, his sister and brother-in-law, Carol and Chris Allen, of Duxbury, and his nieces and nephews: Kevin Kasenchak, of San Jose, California, Kristopher Kasenchak, of San Ramon, California, Shawn Reagan, of Valrico, Florida, Erin Morris, of Charlotte, North Carolina and Laura and Jack Allen, both of Duxbury. He was the son of the late William and Kathryn Vogler, both of Orlando, Florida and the brother of the late Andrea Kasenchak, of Woodside, California. A memorial celebration will be held at his home in Duxbury on Saturday, April 9 at 5:00 p.m. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to the political science departments at Wheaton College 26 East Main St. Norton MA 02766 and the University of North Carolina or to the Boston Symphony Orchestra.