Donald Charles Hays

Ventura - Donald Charles Hays, of Ventura, California, crossed over to be with his Lord and Savior on January 17, 2021. He was 94 years old. Don was born to parents Minnie Brunsdon Hays and Charles Henry Hays in Des Moines, Iowa. Don also had a sister, Jeanne. Upon graduation from high school, Don enlisted in the US Navy. After two years of service in the Navy as a Quartermaster during World War 2, from 1943-1945, Don received scholastic and basketball scholarships to attend the University of Iowa. He played four years of basketball and was a avid Hawkeye athletics fan to the end of his life. Don was also a potential draftee to the professional basketball circuit. However, he chose to pursue a career opportunity with General Electric.

Don started his career in computer sales with General Electric in Cincinnati, Ohio. During his tenure with GE he received an MBA from Harvard Business School. He moved to Northern California with GE and subsequently switched his career to wealth management. Don and Cynthia raised their two daughters, Linda and Lee in Orinda, CA. After roles at Merrill Lynch and Drexel Burnham, he eventually retired at age 70 from Morgan Stanley in Walnut Creek, CA.

Don was a devoted husband and father of two daughters, four stepdaughters, and eight step-grandchildren. He was a passionate investment manager who spent hours each day researching equities and reading financial publications. Well into his 90s, he stayed on top of daily market trends, political developments, and had a facile understanding of the world economy. An excellent athlete, he focused on golf in his later decades and enjoyed memberships in the Round Hill Club in Alamo, CA and PGA West in La Quinta, CA. He especially enjoyed the camaraderie and friendships he developed in his men's golf groups and was reputed to underreport his age after he turned 80 so that he could remain with the younger friends with whom he regularly competed.

Don was preceded in death by his wife of 30 years, Cynthia J Hays, with whom he shared his two daughters, Linda Lynn, and Cynthia Lee. They enjoyed a sports-filled and idyllic life in northern California. In 1989, he married and is preceded in death by Shirley D. Hays, with whom he attended Moraga Valley Presbyterian Church. Don and Shirley were committed members of the church and enjoyed a fulfilling and socially active ten years together with their respective children and Shirley's grandchildren. In 2000, he married and was preceded in death by Shirley Warren Hays, whom he met at church and with whom he spent twenty years, during which they moved to La Quinta, CA. At PGA West, they enjoyed a busy life of golf and bridge games, attendance at Community Presbyterian Church in Palm Desert, and the company of dear old and new friends and their children and grandchildren. Don's heart was broken when he was preceded in death by his daughter, Linda Lynn at age 50.

Don is survived by Cynthia Lee Hays and her wife, Mary Ashford, stepdaughters Amanda (Hal) Wellford, Abby (Bill) Waddell, Terri-Lyn Costello, and Sherri McDonald, and grandchildren Warren (Angela) Phillips, Rebecca and Harry Wellford, Davis and Keith Waddell, Shannon and Ryan Costello, Rachel McDonald, and great-grandson, Hall Phillips. Don will be remembered for his resilience and faith in the wake of the deaths of so many he loved, his lively discussions of politics and current events, and the warm, engaging smile in his eyes.

He will rest at Santa Paula Cemetery, Santa Paula, California. Memorial contributions may be made to Assisted Home Hospice, Attn: Marianne Cody, 4450 Westinghouse, Suite 101, Ventura, California 93003