May 23, 2001

Contact: Robert Lowery (509-963-1487/fax 509-963-2301/email loweryr@cwu.edu)

Ellensburg, WA - David Hess, the popular manager of the Central Washington University Store, died last night (Wednesday, May 23) of an apparent heart attack while jogging at the university recreational field adjacent to Tomlinson Stadium, according to CWU Police Chief Steve Rittereiser.

University police were dispatched at 5:42 p.m., following a 911 call about a man down on the turf. When officers arrived, a CWU student trainer had already begun emergency breathing procedures, Rittereiser notes. Campus police and paramedics then took over, transporting Hess to Kittitas Valley Community Hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 6:51 p.m.

"David was a respected and much admired colleague at Central," Rich Corona, CWU associate vice president for business and financial affairs, says. "We will miss him and the many contributions he made to both the campus and Ellensburg communities."

Hess, 49, a 9-year CWU employee, is survived by his wife, Ellen, three daughters and one son.