David Nathan "Gypsy" Chain Memorial Scholarship Fund

David Nathan Chain was a young forest activist killed in 1998 while trying to prevent illegal logging in an Earth First! action near Grizzly Creek in the Van Duzen River valley. Childhood friends in Texas remember David as a gentle, loving man who considered becoming a chiropractor. Traveling to Humboldt County in the midst of the timber controversy, David learned tree-climbing and nonviolent protest tactics; he took the wood's name "Gypsy." The story of his vibrant life and tragic death at 24 is documented in 'A Good Forest For Dying,' by Patrick Beach (2004). On the 20th anniversary of Gypsy's death, community leaders, friends, and fellow activists established this fund to provide an annual scholarship for a local high school senior or first year student at Humboldt State University or College of the Redwoods who has demonstrated commitment to issues of forest ecology through volunteer and/or academic projects. (2018)