Douglas Angus Mcleod

He was the beloved husband of the late Betty. Dear father of Glenn (Martha) McLeod. Grandfather of Graham, Emily and Samuel. Great-grandfather of Ethan. Brother of Lillian and the late Evelyn.

Douglas was a proud WWII Veteran of Aleutians & Europe who earned a Combat Infantryman Badge. He was a former designer for Ford Body Engineering and volunteered for World Medical Relief as well as the Livonia Adult Basic Education Program. Douglas was also a member of Cross Pointe Meadows Church.

The family of Douglas McLeod has agreed to follow his wishes and generously donate his body to the University of Michigan Medical School for future research and education.

There will be a Memorial Service with Military Honors at the:

Harry J. Will Funeral Home

37000 Six Mile Road (East of I-275 and Newburgh Road)

Livonia, Michigan 48152

(734)591-3700

Memorial Donations may be made in Douglas's name to either:

Alzheimer's Association

Greater Michigan Chapter

Detroit Area Region - Chapter Office

20300 Civic Center Drive #100

Southfield, MI 48076

(800)272-3900

or

World Medical Relief

11745 Rosa Parks Blvd., Detroit, Michigan 48206-1270 U.S.A.

Phone: (313) 866-5333 / Fax: (313) 866-5588

http://www.worldmedicalrelief.org/

The following is a biography as written by Douglas

Doug McLeod was born on April 22, 1918 to Gladys and Murdock McLeod. He was the second child to arrive, his sister Evelyn having preceded him by a couple of years. About 8 years later, sister Lillian was born to complete the family. Doug started life in the small coal mining town of Sydney Mines on Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia, Canada. His father was a coal miner there. Doug had fond memories of going to spend many summers at his dad’s parent’s farm at nearby Little Bras d’Or Lake. The family moved to Detroit in 1926 where his dad became a Ford employee. Shortly thereafter, they moved to Highland Park where all the children went thru the school system there, Doug graduating from Highland Park High School in 1934. He had just turned 16 in April and 6 weeks later had graduated. This meant he was quite a bit younger than his peers and often said he would not recommend such a practice. He had advanced two grades when he came from Canada. He was admitted to a tool and die apprenticeship program at Ford and worked there for the Power Department until February of ’41 when he joined the National Guard on an anti-aircraft unit that was formed from an old cavalry troop that used to train at Rouge Park where they kept their horses. After two weeks in the Guard, they were inducted into Federal Service and went to Fort Sheridan, Illinois near Chicago. While in the Guard, he became good friends with George Murdock, his wife Betty’s brother. Doug went to an army school in Ft. Monroe, VA for an intense course of training, from which he graduated as a Master Gunner. He had not been reassigned to this outfit for very long when Pearl Harbor occurred. His outfit, the 210th, was sent near Seattle, Washington. In July of ’42, they were sent to Alaska near Anchorage and in November out to the Aleutians, where they went to friendly occupied Adak Island first and then as an invasion force to Amchitka Island where it turned out the only occupants were in an old Russian Orthodox Cemetery. Shortly after occupying the island, the Japanese became aware of the 210th’s presence and bombed them regularly at 6pm for a couple of weeks until the landing strip was completed and the fighters that used it forced the Japanese to stay away. After over two years away from home, they returned to the USA, went to California first and then split up, with Doug going to Texas for infantry training. All this time he had lost contact with Betty’s brother George who didn’t go to Alaska but rather to Officers Candidate School. Betty had answered the letter of inquiry that Doug made to Georges home address in Detroit and thus began a long series of exchanged letters. Just after the Battle of the Bulge, Doug was sent to Europe where he saw action as a sergeant in a rifle squad of the 143rd infantry regiment, 36th division. They went thru Alsace-Lorraine and Bavaria, Germany. Doug came home and was discharged in Oct ’95 after 4 years and 8 months in the Army. He went back to work at Ford and took courses in Engineering Drafting at Lawrence Institute. He switched jobs and spent the rest of his time with Ford as a Designer in Body Engineering, retiring in June of 1981. Then too, he became better acquainted with Betty and they were married in August of 1946. Doug always felt that God had picked Betty out for him and they have shared a happy marriage for all these many years. They have one son, Glenn, who has always been a joy to them. Glenn married Martha Hovey and they have three children: Graham, Emily and Samuel. Doug attended the St. Paul Methodist Episcopal Church in Highland Park during his childhood years and remembers the great annual picnics they used to have at Bob-Lo. Betty’s family was always involved with the Grand River Baptist Church and it was there that Doug and Betty were married and both taught Sunday school. Later, when Glenn was attending Redford High School, Doug and Betty switched their membership to Redford Baptist where Glenn and Martha were married and where Doug and Betty have been members ever since. Betty and Doug have volunteered at World Medical Relief every Monday since 1983. Doug has also been tutoring in reading, spelling and math in the Adult Basic Education of Livonia since 1986. Doug always liked to keep his body in good condition and for a long time jogged 6 miles every day, a habit he would later regret for it damages the knees and hips when overdone. While jogging, he would use the time to commit to memory some of his favorite things such as: The Sermon on the Mount, Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address, Edgar Allen Poe’s “The Raven” and many of Kipling’s poems. He also loved to ride his bike and has often said that Heaven couldn’t be much nicer than riding down a quiet residential street on a bright summer day with a gentle breeze, to see the beautiful flowers, feel the shade of the trees and hear the birds singing away. God sure knew what He was doing. He hopes that St. Peter had a nice bike reserved for him.

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