SOUTHWEST HARBOR David C. Coffey, 66, died Sunday, June 29, 2008, at a Bangor hospital. He was born Dec. 1, 1941, in Norfolk, Va., to Joseph and Gladys (Cameron) Coffey. David was a graduate of Auburn University, Alabama, where he earned a Bachelor of Science in applied physics. He had a lifelong fascination with boats, ships, sailboats and yachts. He nurtured his passion for seafaring vessels by joining the U.S. Navy and serving as an officer on both a submarine and an aircraft carrier during the Vietnam War. In 1972, David married Rita Littlefield of Old Town, and they settled on Mount Desert Island as he began his career in boat building and design. After employment at The Hinkley Co., John M. Williams Co., and Wilbur Yachts, he started his own business in 1984, D. C. Coffey & Co. As a naval architect, David designed a variety of small craft for customers in New England and Mid-Atlantic states. David was a charter member of Mount Desert Island Kiwanis Club founded in 1983, and he held the office of treasurer at the time of his death. David is survived by his loving wife, Rita Littlefield Coffey; sister, Ellen Coffey Rooney and her husband, Charles, of Decatur, Ga.; brother, Douglas Coffey and his wife, Gloria, of Millington, Tenn.; sister-in-law, Marguerite Capen and her husband, Larry, of Richmond, Va.; sister-in-law, Carol Klitch and her husband, Roy, of Old Town; brother-in-law, Herbert Nightingale of Bangor; as well as many nieces and nephews. David was predeceased by his parents; and by sister-in-law, Ernestine Nightingale.