David Stanley Roberts

David Stanley Roberts, 70, passed away Tuesday, May 27, 2025 at his home in Calvert City, Kentucky. He was a member of Riverwoods Church in Benton.
Dave was a humble man with a calm nature. He was a proud father, grandfather, and great-grandfather, and he always looked for ways to help others and advocate for the dairy and agriculture communities he loved.
Born Sept. 15, 1954, the son of Robert C. and Ruth A. (Bathgate) Roberts, Dave grew up on the family dairy farm in Sussex County, New Jersey, where he attended high school and was involved in 4-H and FFA and showed reg¬istered Holsteins.
He graduated the two-year dairy and ag science program at SUNY-Cobleskill in 1975. Around that time, the National Park Service began acquiring land for the Delaware Gap Na-tional Recreation Area, and the family farm was eventually sold, which left the question of where to relocate.
Dave transferred for a semester at Cornell University but then made his way to Murray State University in western Kentucky, where he graduated in 1977 with a B.S. in agricul-ture. This fortuitous decision led his family to relocate their 100 Holstein dairy cows to Livingston County, Kentucky, where he dairied until the herd was sold in 2003. During this time, he served as a Kentucky Farm Bureau board member.
The Kentucky Dairy Development Council (KDDC) formed in 2005 and hired Dave among its first dairy consultants in 2007. He served as the western Kentucky dairy consultant and consultant supervisor for nearly 19 years until the time of his passing.
In a statement from KDDC, Dave is described as ''one of our best advocates for the Kentucky dairy industry long be¬fore he even began with KDDC. He was a friend, mentor, and spokesperson for countless dairy producers over the years. Dave never hesitated to go above and beyond to help those who sought his assistance, whether that was on the farm, at dairy events across the state, and especially within our organization. KDDC and our dairy community will feel the lasting impact of his contributions for years to come.''
Whether it was traveling to Wisconsin with a group of farmers on a cheese processing fact-finding mission, help¬ing farmers stay up-to-date on milk markets and industry changes that affected their businesses, working with oth¬ers to spearhead a relief fund and to link food and necessi¬ties to farms and the public after the catastrophic tornadoes in 2021, volunteering to help with the State Fair cheese auction to benefit youth programs, or working with youth exhibitors at the State Fair, District youth dairy show and North American International livestock Exposition in Lou¬isville, Dave was a friend to be counted on.
He is survived by two sons Sean (Lauretta) Roberts of Hampton, Virginia; and Dustin (Angela) Roberts of Jacks¬boro, Tennessee; a sister, Diane (Danny) Fraley of Smithland, Kentucky; grandchildren Ashton Roberts, Kaiya Cox, Keagan Roberts, Sloan Roberts, Narobi Cox, Jeslie Roberts, Oaklinn Brandon, Quinn Brandon, and Kaydin Green; great-grandchildren, Alana and Allison Lawson Gunkle; and his longtime companion Barbara. He was preceded in death by his parents.
On June 7, a service at 1:00 p.m. CDT and visitation at 10:30 a.m. CDT will be at the chapel of Boyd Funeral Di¬rectors, 212 East Main Street, Salem, KY 42078. Burial will follow in Smithland Cemetery.