David Beach is a 43-year resident of Charlottesville VA, having returned to the City permanently after a 7-year stint in Chicago following his graduation from the University of Virginia’s Darden School of Business in 1969. He is a native of Dallas, and before attending the Darden School, he graduated from Southern Methodist University in 1967 with an honors degree in Economics. During his time in Chicago, he worked for Arthur Andersen & Co., and became a CPA. Once back in Charlottesville, he founded National Optronics, a company which manufactures precision machinery for the optical lens industry, and ran the company for 25 years before selling it 13 years ago.

David and his wife Carolyn have a long history of philanthropy in the Charlottesville community, and he has served on the Boards or Committees of numerous charitable organizations over the years, most notably with the Boys & Girls Club and the foundation that operates Monticello.