Donald Frederick Overdier

Donald Frederick Overdier, age 93 of Cary North Carolina passed away on Wednesday May 7, 2025. Donald was born October 2, 1931, to Edgar and Leona (Oberst) Overdier, in Racine, Wisconsin.

As Donald considered what was next in life after high school, he tried an assortment of jobs such as TV repair, car repair, and he even did a short stint driving a fish truck into downtown Chicago. Donald was drafted into the Army during the Korean War and graduated from Signal School (Microwave Radio Repair) in Fort Monmouth, NJ.

After being discharged from the Army, Donald returned to Wisconsin and enrolled in college. As luck would have it, Donald Overdier found his seat in Chemistry class at the University of Wisconsin next to Gloria Peck. On June 21st, 1958, after graduating from UW-Madison with an engineering degree, Donald and Gloria married and relocated to Minnesota. They lived and raised their family in Burnsville.

Donald worked his entire 30-plus-year career as an electrical engineer at UNIVAC/Unisys. In 1997, Donald and Gloria relocated to Cary, North Carolina, to be close to their children and grandchildren.

One of Donald’s passions was traveling, especially when it involved an opportunity to learn. When the children were young, he made sure that they experienced the US with numerous family road trips.

In later years, Donald traveled with Gloria (and often children and grandchildren). He enjoyed hundreds of trips, many with Road Scholar, exploring the United States and many international destinations. Northern Italy was one of his and Gloria’s very favorite places to visit. Donald and Gloria biked through Denmark, kayaked in the Low Country of South Carolina, visited the Copper Canyon by train, explored many wineries, and he even went horseback riding in his mid-80s. Donald was happy to travel to any location that Gloria chose, which included an annual trip to Duck, NC (OBX) with family.

He had many varied interests, such as shortwave radio, woodworking, whittling, wine making, trains, horses, horticulture, and even making his own yogurt. He could fix/build almost anything. Donald loved dogs, especially Shelties, having owned several over the years.

Donald was a lifelong learner, always interested in and reading about topics such as investing, healthy eating, history, and current technology. He loved music and tried his hand at learning the harmonica and even the ukulele in his later years. The talent that Donald fully mastered was whistling. He could call the kids home for dinner or beautifully whistle any tune. Donald didn’t know a stranger, he could (and would) stop and talk with just about anyone, gleaning tidbits of their life experiences and sharing his.

Donald loved his family and was constantly thinking about his children and grandchildren, wanting them to live up to their full potential. Above all, Donald loved his wife, Gloria. They did absolutely everything together, and he missed her terribly these past few years.

Donald is survived by his son David Overdier (Janice) of Cary; daughters Susan Sager (Scott) of Raleigh and Kathryn Williams of Knightdale; grandchildren Sydney, Riley and Reid Sager; Alexander Williams and Kate Marks (Justin); step-granddaughter Catherine Taylor (Bryan) of Wake Forest; step-great-grandson Turner Taylor; and his special Wisconsin/Michigan cousins: The Pfeiffer, Deibert, and Overdier families. He is preceded in death by his beloved wife of 64 years, Gloria; his parents; and his sister Janet Keel.

Special thanks to the Woodland Terrace team for taking such good care of Donald. Thank you to Jessica and Martha for their support.

A private celebration of life will be held at a later date.