(Opinion) David Krempels’ lifeline for brain injury survivors

His contributions to New Hampshire will continue to leave a lasting impression on the state

Morey Stettner

LEGACY

By: Morey Stettner

Soon after David Krempels launched his construction business in 1975, he faced a dilemma.

A client hired him to renovate her home, but she rejected his recommendation to use high-quality siding. She wanted a cheaper alternative.

Krempels knew the project would not meet his high standards if they went with the lower-end product. So, he paid for better siding out of his own pocket.

Krempels, who died on April 17 from bone cancer at age 76, placed a higher value on his reputation than maximizing his profit.

More than two decades later — after a devastating motor vehicle accident left him with a severe traumatic brain injury — he launched another venture: a nonprofit organization now known as the Krempels Brain Injury Center.

Today, the Portsmouth, NH-based Krempels Brain Injury Center has gained national prominence for its innovative programs to help people living with acquired brain injury.

The accident occurred on June 8, 1992. Krempels, then 42, and his bride, Ettamae, were on their honeymoon, driving north on the Maine Turnpike near Portland when a 16-wheel tractor-trailer hit their car.

Ettamae was killed in the collision.

Krempels braved three crushing blows: suffering the loss of his new wife, undergoing nearly two months of acute care (after a 15-day coma) and persevering through a harrowing two-and-a-half-year odyssey as he and his legal team sought to hold to account the parties responsible for the accident.

He called those years the hardest, loneliest, most desperate years of his life. He walked with a cane, lived on food stamps and had no idea if he’d ever work again.

The son of Reverend Robert A. Krempels and Mary Catherine Krempels, David Michael Krempels was born on November 18, 1949, in Pennsylvania. Robert, who died in 2022 at age 102, was a Pentecostal pastor who led several congregations over his long career.

Krempels graduated from University of New Hampshire in 1973 with a political science degree. Living in Newmarket, NH, he played sports while laying the groundwork for a career as a building contractor.

“After UNH, I had two career choices,” he recalled. “Law school or carpenter.”

Unsure about a white-collar career, he worked for home builders. A quick learner, he loved the grueling labor.

“When I was throwing cement around and mixing mortar, I found I really liked it,” he said.

After a few years of working for others, he set out on his own. While he lacked startup capital and experience running a business, his attention to detail and commitment to customer satisfaction drove his success.

Over the next decade, he earned widespread recognition for his projects. For his work as general contractor on the Wharton House in Nottingham, NH, Krempels won the 1985 Wood Design Award from the American Wood Council. That same year, Architectural Record featured a four-page spread of the Wharton House that he built.

The accident abruptly ended his work as a contractor. His life remained in limbo as his friend and attorney, John Ahlgren, filed a lawsuit against the parties responsible for the accident. Krempels survived on a near-empty fridge until January 1995 when the jury reached a verdict. The result was among the largest plaintiff personal injury awards in Maine history.

Krempels used part of the multimillion-dollar settlement to start a nonprofit organization called Stepping Stones. Now the Krempels Brain Injury Center, it has provided community-based, in-person programs to help individuals navigate life after brain injury.

Over 26 years, it has grown steadily and become a national model to support people with brain injury.

As the Krempels Center grew, acclaim for its founder followed. In 2000, he won the Paul Harris Fellow Recognition for work in the Portsmouth community. In 2005, he received the Granite State Award for contributions to New Hampshire. And in 2014, he was presented with the Mayor’s Award of Portsmouth for individuals who have made significant contributions to the community.

Morey Stettner resides in Portsmouth.