David Williams (Terry) Cave

David Terry Cave, 102, died peacefully in her sleep in the early morning hours of October 19, 2019, in Henrico County.  A longtime former resident of Luray, Virginia, Mrs. Cave was the wife of Captain Amos William Cave Jr. of Luray.  She was born in South Boston, Virginia, and was a great granddaughter of E.B. Jeffress, called the town’s father.  Mrs. Cave was named for her father, John David Terry, who died a month before she was born.  Her mother, Pauline Motley Terry, worked to provide for and raise Mrs. Cave and her older sister, Drucilla. 

Mrs. Cave graduated from Longwood College with a degree in Secondary Education and became a teacher of high school English, first in Wytheville and then in Chesterfield County.  She met Bill Cave while living in Richmond, when he was in dental school at the Medical College of Virginia and under the Army school program. They wed in Richmond in 1944 and moved to the first of assigned Army posts, Carlisle, Pennsylvania.  Other posts were in Georgia and an overseas assignment for Dr. Cave in the Pacific area.  Mrs. Cave moved to Luray to await his return, staying with his parents, Amos Sr. and Hilda Cave, and teaching at Luray High School.   At the end of the year in 1946, Dr. Cave established a dental practice in Luray, and they remained until 1952.  During that time, their son and daughter were born.  In 1952, Dr. Cave joined the Navy, and the family began a new life which took them to duty stations and places on the East and West coast.

The Navy was a lifelong career for her husband, and Mrs. Cave thoroughly enjoyed the experiences they had and the friends they made.  When Dr. Cave retired from the Navy in 1978, the Caves returned to Luray and became permanent residents.  Mrs. Cave became an active member of Main Street Baptist Church.  After the death of her husband in 1989, Mrs. Cave remained in Luray, enjoying her home, her closely knit neighborhood, the fellowship of friends, and support of the church.  She lived in Luray until 2014, when she moved to Henrico, Virginia, close to her family. 

Mrs. Cave is survived by her children, grandchildren, great grandchildren, nephew and great nieces and their families.  Children:  Terry Cave and his wife, Lou Ann Fox Cave; Cynthia Cave and her husband, Blanton Bradley Jr. Grandchildren:  Jennifer May and her husband, Troy; John Cave; and Brett Cave. Great grandchildren:  Savannah May and Zachary May. Nephew:  Paul Stefko and his wife, Nancy, and their daughters Kristin and Karen.

A service will be conducted for Mrs. Cave at Main Street Baptist Church in Luray, Virginia, on Saturday, October 26th at 2 p.m.  The family may be visited at Bradley Funeral Home on Friday evening from 7 to 8.

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