I want all of you to know that your stories about Uncle Don have warmed my heart and made me smile. He was a kind and gentle soul, the consummate gentleman and professional, and the most loving uncle to twenty –some nieces and nephews,. He was generous, patient, a little shy, and he was a good listener. You didn’t have to tell him you needed something; he could just perceive it and fill the need almost anonymously. When I was heading off to college, I was doing so on a shoestring. Uncle Don took me to Lazarus to shop for whatever I wanted or needed for school. That was a gift that was most meaningful....not just the items he bought me, but also the time he spent with me, giving up a whole day to browse and chat and make me feel special.
One of you wrote that Don will never get the obituary that he would write. I have a few things to add that didn’t make it into the Beacon’s obituary this morning, and I offer them in light of Don’s modesty, knowing that you probably don’t know these things about him either, but that I feel are important achievements in his life. If you do already know them, please forgive me. At Ohio State during Don’s tenure as editor of The Lantern, it was voted the best college newspaper in the state of Ohio. During his time at the Indianapolis Star, he had a personal interview with President John F. Kennedy. In Cincinnati with the AP, he interviewed the Beatles on their first tour of the U.S. In Columbus with the AP, Don was the reporter who flew off in a helicopter or rode in a limousine with Governor James A. Rhodes at the governor’s request. He really liked and trusted Don.
The last time I saw Don was in October of 2006. He had come to Akron for our daughter’s wedding. He had the time of his life at that reception! He danced and danced and smiled and laughed the entire evening. That is how I want to always remember him, just full of joy and sheer delight.
As I read all of the lovely tributes your site has printed, I cried. Don would be so touched to read how you all feel, and somehow, I think all the warmth has reached him in Heaven.
Thank you all for your tributes to a wonderful man. You have made many, many people happy to know that you all cared so much for Don.
Ever so sincerely,
Elaine Palmer Urban
Hudson, Ohio
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This may be the best post here on Don. It tells of Don's achievements of which most of his BJ friends were unaware. As others have mentioned, he was a soft-spoken epitome of a gentleman.
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