Dave Litaker: Making Connections

As a retired doctor, Dave Litaker understands better than most the consequences of people missing medical treatments because they can’t get to them.

So, while he’s been a volunteer driver for only a year or so, he has thrown himself into the effort. He drives for both RappMedRides and the American Cancer Society’s Road to Recovery, and can make up to 10 trips a month between the two.

Litaker, who at 59 is young for a driver, has no regrets. “The thing I enjoyed when I was in medicine was making connections with people. But as time went on, the industry changed, and it became more and more difficult to establish relationships,” Litaker noted. “There was this constant pressure to move people through the office.

“There were two things that compelled me to start driving,” he continued. “I wanted to give back to the community. And I wanted to get to know folks that I wouldn’t have been likely to come into contact with.”

A case in point was a rider he drove to Charlottesville for treatment several times. “This person talked to me about their interest in hunting. And our conversation moved to cooking what you kill,” he said. “I was fascinated that this had been a part of this person’s life for so long.”

More than one person has told him that they wished they had called for a ride sooner. But they thought it might be an imposition. Or they weren’t quite ready to trust a driver they didn’t know.

Litaker said he understands that. But he hopes more people will start to take advantage of the services.

“People can use this as a real lifeline,” he said. “Not just to get to the doctor, but also just be able to talk to someone. I usually don’t have to say much. I’ll say, ‘Tell me about your grandchildren,’ and it just keeps rolling out.”