Donald Wayne White

Donald Wayne White died at home on October 2nd at the age of 72, with his friends and family by his side. With his tough battle with cancer finally over, we told “Uncle Don” stories into the night and he surely would have loved it. Born in Westfield, MA. Don was the youngest of 3 sons born to Irene and Ken White. After spending his youth in the Westfield area, the family moved to Philadelphia and then Cinnaminson NJ where Don went to High School. Being mechanically inclined, Don often cut school to spend time at Landgraf’s Mobil station where he repaired lawn mowers, watched as Jim worked on cars and learned the lessons of business and life. He and Jim Landgraf became life-long friends and once Jim and wife Margi gave birth to Lisa, the “Uncle Don” moniker was established.

A star athlete, dog-lover and a ladies man, Don joined the Marines anticipating deployment to Vietnam but was kept state side when they discovered he could type 80WPM. In his youth Don loved running on the beach, bonfires, playing pool and fishing. He met and married Michelle Watson at the age of 19 and his son Keith was born shortly after. Their marriage didn’t last long but Dons commitment to being an excellent father never wavered. He got certified and often went scuba diving with friends traveling to and from LBI to get his son after a divorce. Once out of the service, Don worked on building houses, then sold construction equipment, launched a janitorial business and then KDM Construction Services which he operated for close to 20 years. During that time, Don reconnected with Dana Walthall who he knew from Cinnaminson High. They married, bought a house in Moorestown NJ where Keith came to live with them and attend high school. In 2000 Don gave up his business and D&D moved to Morgan Hill California as Dana’s career led to a transfer there. Always selfless, Don made it his mission to get their new place looking good and five years later they were able to sell that house for a nice profit, allowing them to build their “retirement home” near Sanibel where they had often vacationed.

In retirement Don bought a boat and fished the Gulf. He was a huge boxing fan and liked watching the Miami Dolphins and ancient history shows. He was very close to Dana’s family (Deb, JoAnn and John & Carol), he spent a lot of time with her nieces and nephews (Laura, JD, Eric, Erin, Matt, Bryan and Cassidy). Don remained close with his big brother Ken his entire life and cherished his children (Brian, Kevin, Trevor and Stephanie). Likewise, he was also fond of his Brother Michael’s children (Michael and Michelle). Before moving to California, Don finally convinced Dana to get their first yellow lab Cutter. Eventually they would have Jake and now Reedy, and all of them have truly enriched their lives.

Don was the thrilled when Keith married Erika Millman in 2012 and soon became the PROUD grandfather of Mazzy and Kodi White, who love their “pop pop”. Don will be remembered for his warm heart, colorful stories and as a defender of righteousness with whomever he encountered.