There is an empty desk at the Shelbyville Times-Gazette.

It is the first time it has been unoccupied in 48 years. Tuesday morning David Melson, who sat in that seat, passed away from a brief bout with cancer.

His reading glasses are still on his desk. Two empty cartons of diet soft drinks sit behind it. Mockingly, a calendar for 2023 is below his computer screen – days he will not see on this earth.

When Dave left the office March 23, he had no idea it would be his last edition of the T-G and that he would never return.

All of our lives are fragile. We never really know what God has in store for us. We need to live each day as if it is going to be our last.

I first knew of Dave when he was a nine-year-old trying out for the Madison Street Elementary School minor league baseball team, a prep league for those wanting to try to later latch on with a Little League team. Miss Harriett, as I always addressed his mother, would be there every morning to watch him. I was helping Madison Street principal Joe Ingram coach the team.

I also eventually served as a scorekeeper for the games, thanks to lessons from Bobby Locke and John Stanford who helped me turn plays on the field into something coherent on paper. I first got to know Glenn “Bo” Melson, Dave’s father, when I would drop off the scorebooks after games.

Later as I progressed through various sports in Shelbyville, I often had chances to talk with Bo. I spent my junior year of high school working with “Bo” and so many of our discussions centered on how proud he was of Dave.

Dave didn’t develop as a baseball player, but he was a football player at Shelbyville Central High School.

I never addressed the subject with “Bo”, but I know he was more than a little excited when Dave decided to join the T-G staff.

Dave, like his father, earned a number of awards for his photography and writing. And, like his father, he didn’t say much about those accomplishments.

Frankly, Dave never said much about anything. Occasionally, he would comment positively on someone’s work. When someone managed to engage him in a discussion, he usually had a strong viewpoint to express, something he inherited from his father.

He did a little bit of everything at the Times-Gazette throughout the years. He had to be forced to take vacation time. I am certain he was expecting to do more. This was his life.

We found out about Dave’s death Tuesday morning. There has been a deafening quietness in the building this week.

The symbol “-30-“ once marked the end of a news story. Lately, it has been used to mark the end of a newspaper’s existence. I am using it today to mark the passing of David Melson.

“-30-“ Dave. As a veteran newspaper man it is only fitting.