Donald Gene McCoy, Lieutenant Colonel USAF (Ret.)

Don was born in Checotah, OK on June 8, 1935 to Tom and Rhoda McCoy during an era of severe drought, heat, dust storms and economic depression. At the end of 1936, his family moved to California, seeking a better life, and settled near Dinuba, CA. He was raised and educated there through high school, developing an aptitude for math and science.

In high school, Don had little prospect for college and a professional career. Changing his life, his school superintendent and principal provided encouragement and guided him through the steps to compete for a service academy appointment. After high school graduation in June 1953, the two men appeared in a peach orchard where Don was working, called him down from his ladder, and announced, “You’re going to the Naval Academy.”

Don graduated from the Naval Academy (USNA) in June 1957 and selected an Air Force commission in order to be able to fly, as well as avoid another small ship cruise in the rough North Sea. He began a 22-year Air Force career at Navigator Training School in Harlingen, TX and extended there as an instructor. After a C-130 Troop Carrier Squadron assignment on Okinawa, he completed a Master's Degree in Math at Oklahoma University en route to a math teaching assignment at the Air Force Academy.

Told in 1971 that he needed to get back to the “real Air Force” after 5 years in academia, he was assigned to a combat tour in the AC-130E Gunship in support of the Vietnam conflict. His recognition for that tour alone included 15 awards of the Air Medal and 3 awards of the Distinguished Flying Cross. He concluded his military career in defense satellite program management in Los Angeles.

Following retirement in 1979, Don worked as an engineering administrator at Fairchild Aircraft in San Antonio and then taught community college mathematics until moving to Austin in 1996. In Austin, he spent many years as a legal assistant for his son-in-law’s practice and enjoyed supporting his grandchildren’s activities and collecting historical U.S. coins for them.

Don was preceded in death by his wife of 63 years, Charlene Rose Petrovics McCoy. He is survived by his daughters: Donna (Chuck) Ruesink and Aline Lisa Anderson; four grandchildren: Jake (Jackie) Ruesink, Jana (Josef) Miller, Cory (Meg) Anderson, and Kristen (Hayden) Kingston; three great-grandchildren: Hayes Ruesink, Axl Miller, and Cole Kingston; and by his dear friend, Christine Erwin. He was a member of the Austin Chapter of the USNA Alumni Association. The cornerstone of his character was a quiet faith devoted to service.

Arrangements are being handled by Cook-Walden Funeral Home in Austin, with inurnment planned at Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery in San Antonio on April 13, 2026, at 11:15 a.m.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made in Don’s memory to The Wounded Warrior Project, the Stephen Siller Tunnel to Towers Foundation, or a veteran-support charity of your choice.