Don was raised in Wellsville, Ohio, by his mother Masie and her parents, Deforest and Elsie Coy. He graduated in electrical engineering from the Case Institute of Technology in 1941. He helped build B-26 bombers during World War II and later worked for over thirty years at the Pacific Gas and Electrical Company in San Francisco. He and his beloved wife Ada enjoyed their retirement until her death in 2002. Don's health declined over the last decade, yet he retained a cheerful outlook an sharp sense of humor. He was a man of facts and logic, not emotion, but he was devoted to his family and provided generously for them.
Don is survived by his son, Jeffrey Gallup of Phoenix and Washington, D.C., his daughter Lana Sue (Susie) Mercer of Ocate, New Mexico, her son Patrick Scott Lavelle and wife Patricia, of Ben Lomond, California, and their daughters Rosalea, Rachelle, Nina and Ginger.
A celebration of Don's life will be held at A.L. Moore-Grmishaw Bethany Chapel, 710 W. Bethany Home Road, Phoenix, AZ., 2:00 P.M. Saturday, May 15, 2010.
