Those who knew David Kiefel well would know that the word "self" was not in his vocabulary.
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Family and friends gathered at the Corowa RSL Club and celebrated a man whose "fantastic sense of humour" always "left people on the edge", as recounted by David Howard, his friend since high school.
Mr Kiefel, 61, died at Albury Base Hospital on May 20 after being diagnosed with Japanese encephalitis in early March.
He was remembered as a "fun" and "very generous" man who always loved animals.
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Born Warren David Kiefel in Corowa on November 28, 1960, Mr Kiefel was the youngest son of the late Athol and Beryl Kiefel, and brother to Errol, Jennifer and Elizabeth.
He attended Corowa Primary School and Corowa High School. After finishing Year 12, he left the town to work for the Bank of NSW, and later with Westpac around the state.
While living in Jindabyne, he met his soulmate, Jackie Monk. They married in Corowa on July 7, 2007.
Ms Monk said her late husband "did not care to be serious too often".
As a toddler and young boy, he loved to explore and often got into a lot of mischief, she said.
"One of David's pastimes as a toddler was taking off to the monument at the top of Sanger Street, despite his father Athol adding barbed wire to the front fence," Ms Monk said.
"David was often found hanging on with his nappy accompanied by his dog Scrap."
Another story - to the delight of the congregation - was about him stealing lollies from the family's next-door neighbour by leaning a kitchen stool against the cupboards.
After eating the lollies, he would leave a trail of wrappers leading back to the Kiefel home.
"There's a former primary school master's letterbox, where the lids are still not closed properly due to his son and David's experiment with fire crackers," Ms Monk said.
As a young man, Mr Kiefel loved to attend Scouts. He also loved music, and travelled to the big cities to see concerts by the greats such as David Bowie, Queen and The Rolling Stones.
Later in life, Mr Kiefel became a formative member of the Corowa Community Garden, where he devoted much of his time.
The community garden's Joan Palmer said she regarded Mr Kiefel as a son, and was "truly grateful" for his "unconditional support over the years".
"In his formative years, David learned permaculture by osmosis from his dad, and what a gift," she said.
Mr Kiefel was also known for assisting Corowa's homeless and providing for wildlife sanctuaries with needed items.
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