David J. Elberti - Obituary

avid John Elberti, P.E., a lifelong resident of Edgewater, MD passed away peacefully on August 26, 2022 after a three year battle with multiple myeloma. He was born on January 30, 1963 to John Paul and Charlotte Elberti. Dave attended Edgewater Elementary School where he proudly remembered being the sixth grade class president. He was a member of the first four-year graduating class at the new South River High School during the time when students selected the school mascot, the Seahawk. Dave attended the University of Maryland, College Park, graduating with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Civil Engineering. He was a member of the Alpha Tau Omega Fraternity. Dave was a registered Professional Engineer in the State of Maryland and a Project Management Professional. Dave’s professional career began with engineering positions of advancing levels of responsibility in land development for several private engineering firms in Maryland and Washington DC. During this time, he served in various leadership positions in the American Society of Civil Engineers, Baltimore, MD. In 2010, Dave started his career in public service at the St. Mary’s County Metropolitan Commission, California, MD. He served as the Chief Engineer and Department Head of the Countywide Water and Sewer Authority responsible for managing 30 employees and a $120 million Capital Improvement Budget. While in St. Mary’s County, Dave served as the President of the Leonardtown, MD Rotary, where he led multiple community service projects. In 2016, Dave wanted to work closer to home and family and accepted a position as a Senior Engineer with Anne Arundel County Department of Public Works doing project management for water and wastewater capital projects, a role he fully embraced. Dave’s deep faith in God underscored his moral principle of service above self. Dave belonged to Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church in Edgewater, MD, where he served on the Stewardship Committee, was the secretary of the Finance Committee and a member of the Haiti Committee. In 2018 he led a fundraising project to construct a new schoolhouse in the sister parish of St. Elizabeth of Hungary in Perodin, Haiti. Dave grew up on the shore of the South River and never passed up an opportunity to be in and around the water. He was a boater, crabber, and a member of the South River Duck Club. He even braved the cold water to participate in the annual Polar Plunge for charity. Dave also started and ran his own company, Chesapeake Shoreline Protection, Inc., where he specialized in design and engineering for shoreline restoration in our local waterways. Dave is survived by his loving wife, Patricia Welesko Elberti; his daughter, Katharina Elberti of Annapolis; his sister, Jane Elberti of Edgewater; his stepmother, Sophia Elberti of Vienna, VA; his aunt, Joan Jenkins of Riva, MD; his uncle, Stan Aagaard of Venice, FL; his mother-in-law, Florence Welesko; his brothers and sisters-in-law, Rick Welesko, Lian Zhang, Paula and John Lesko and Kathy and Steve Payne and many beloved cousins, nieces, nephews and countless professional and personal friends, who will always remember Dave’s pursuit of learning and service to others. All are invited to attend Dave’s services which begin on Thursday, September 8th from 5:30 to 8:30 pm at the Kalas Funeral Home & Crematory, 2973 Solomons Island Rd., Edgewater, MD 21037 with a Mass of Christian Burial on Friday, September 9th at 12:00 pm at Our Lady of Perpetual Help (OLPH) Catholic Church, 515 Loch Haven Rd., Edgewater, MD 21037. Interment will be held at Lakemont Memorial Gardens in Davidsonville, MD. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made, in Dave’s memory, to the Haiti Rectory Building Fund c/o OLPH Church. Online condolences may be made using the Memories tab on this page.