Don, 92, died June 27, 2020, in Lacey, Washington, after suffering from Parkinson's Disease for several years. He graduated from high school in Caldwell, Idaho, and served in the US Army as a MP in South Korea. Don started work with the USFS at an early age due to the lack of manpower during WWII. As a teenager, he manned a lookout and later worked building trails.

Don graduated from the University of Washington with a degree in engineering and spent over four years with the Washington State Dept. of Fisheries designing facilities for salmon migration. He later spent 10 years with Boeing and supervised a group of engineers responsible for the design and construction of the "world's largest building," the 747 manufacturing plant in Everett, WA. From there he
worked as City Engineer for the city of Hoquiam, Washington.

Don then moved to Lacey to be the Director of Public Works and served for 17 years as City Engineer. Don jumped at McCall 1948-50 while attending college.