Have you met David?

“Have you met Ted David?”
– Barney Stinson

Today is David Klomfass’s birthday. His twenty second birthday. Without context that statement is unexceptional. Everyone has a birthday, so why is the fact that David Klomfass is turning twenty-two so noteworthy? Well, let me tell you why. 

David is a special person. A real salt of the earth kind of guy. I first met David about a year and a half ago at a church connect group. It’s basically a bunch of dudes all getting together, talking about life, faith, the content of the previous service, and of course the typical dude stuff: sports, riverboat gambling trips, beef jerky, etc. This was my first time attending and, being the more reserved person I am, I didn’t say much. Of the 12 or so people there, a couple were the explicit leaders, and then there were a couple of implicit leaders pushing the conversation forward. One of those implicit leaders was David. He spoke with conviction in scripture, connected it to his own life, and shared words of wisdom that clearly resonated with the group. He left an impression, not just on me, but on everyone. 

As I was leaving that first connect group David asked me if I wanted to grab coffee that week. I agreed and a few days later, at 6:30 am we were sitting across from each other at a local cafe. Given the weight of David’s words from a couple days prior I assumed he was a seasoned professional with a good amount of mileage, so, after a bit of small talk, when I asked him what he did and he told me he was a student I was a bit surprised – maybe he went back to school for a professional degree, maybe he’s doing a PhD. I probed a bit on what he was studying when he told me he was in his undergrad, in second year… I felt like I had been punked. I think most people that meet David probably feel the same. 

David is humble. He is constantly seeking insights and feedback, diligent enough to filter those inputs, and intentional enough to put the valuable inputs into practice. He is also confident enough to impart wisdom on others. No matter what the situation, I, and others, can anticipate that David will have some words that are both practical and encouraging. That is a key theme you will find when talking to anyone who knows David. He is encouraging. Not through innocuous generalities. David’s encouragement is specific, genuine, and above all, thoughtful. 

David is not just a man of wise words, he is a man of action. David is perceptive enough to identify a need before you articulate it, and without even calling it out he’s already working on filling that need, or finding someone who can. 

David keeps good company. He is a connector. He is always looking to bridge connections and bring people in. At church, David is often the first person you see when you walk in the doors. It’s not just a handshake (pre-COVID) that you’ll get from David. He’ll take the time to really get to know you and from there he’ll find three people that you should meet. I would guess that hundreds of friendships have been borne out of his intentionality in relationship building. 

David is a maximizer. 

He is a maximizer of himself. David is a student, a leader, a teaching assistant, and an athlete (you should see his physique). In each of these areas he excels. He is pulling good marks. He is leading dozens of people at church in a team that, despite its infancy, is executing at a high level. 

He is a maximizer of others. The people on David’s team grow. They grow both in domain expertise, and capacity. But most of all they grow as people. And that extends beyond those that David leads directly. He leads indirectly through influence, which, to me, is leadership mastery. Those around David are better for it. I would wager that anyone in his life would corroborate that statement.

David is not your average twenty two year old. He’s not your average “fill in the blank” year old. David is not average in any sense of the word. 

Yet despite all of this. Despite everyone around him understanding this. He still approaches life with a servant’s heart. He is humble in the truest sense of the word. He understands his strengths and is not ambivalent to those, but he knows his ceiling is so much higher. And that ceiling is not a self serving goal, he is motivated by impact. Impact on others. Impact in the church. He is a man after God’s heart and lives his life with a posture of service. 

David has been a blessing in my life and if you haven’t already I hope you get a chance to meet him too. I know he’ll be a blessing in yours. 

Oh, and by the way, he’s single. If you want an intro feel free to reach out.