Don was born on August 17, 1947 in Evanston, Illinois to Donald C. Gill, Sr. and Lois (Sullivan) Gill. He graduated from the University of Illinois at Chicago. Don was a proud veteran of the United States Army National Guard, where he served for six years. Don moved to Houston in 1975. In 1988, he went to work at Shell Oil as a Systems Engineer. There he met the love of his life, Robin (Leechin); they married on April 14, 1990, and raised their two children, Larry and Jennifer Abney, in Sugar Land. Don retired in 2009.
While in the Army, Don earned multiple Sharp Shooter and Expert Shooter Badges, which sparked one of his favorite lifelong pastimes of collecting and shooting guns. He was an avid lover of anything water-related and spent many happy years scuba diving and photographing underwater life in the Caribbean. He also enjoyed spending time on his boat on Clear Lake and jet skiing in Florida. Don was a passionate collector of drones, antique razors, and the latest cool electronics. Besides his family, one of Don’s biggest loves was fast cars, especially Corvettes. On the weekends, you could always find Don cheering on his beloved Dallas Cowboys and Alabama Crimson Tide with his family.
Don was preceded in death by his father, Donald Sr., father-in-law, Thomas M. Leechin, sister-in-law, Jean Leechin, and one of his best friends, Mike LeBlanc. He is survived by his loving wife of 29 years, Robin, and their two children, Larry and Jennifer; mother, Lois Gill, brother, Rick (Patty) Gill, and sister, Kathy Gill; mother-in-law, Patricia Leechin, brother-in-law, Thomas (Sharon) Leechin, sister-in-law, Stephanie (Jim) Leechin; nieces Rachel (Tim) Yeatman and Angelique Gill; nephews Nicholas Gill, Thomas Leechin, Scott (Ashley) Leechin, Nicholas (Amy) Sakmar, Stephen (Amanda) Sakmar, and Joseph (Kendall) Sakmar; loving relatives, Wayne and Maggie Abney, and Joe and Ruth Jablonka; best friends Bill and Karen Barnhill, Bob and Barbara Cruse, Rick Link and Diana LeBlanc-Link, as well as many other loving relatives, friends, and neighbors.
The family would like to give special thanks to Dr. Guiying Hu of Kelsey-Seybold and Dr. Isabella Glitza of M.D. Anderson Cancer Center for the loving care they have provided over the past ten years.
A Funeral Mass will be held on Thursday, June 6, 2019 at 10:00 am at St. Laurence Catholic Church,
3100 Sweetwater Blvd., Sugar Land, Texas 77479. A reception to be held immediately following the service in the Parish Hall.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the Joe and Jessie Crump Cancer Program of Kelsey-Seybold at 5615 Kirby Drive, Suite 660, Houston, Texas 77005, or Fort Bend Education Foundation at 16431 Lexington Boulevard, Sugar Land, Texas 77479.
DONATIONS
Joe and Jessie Crump Cancer Program of Kelsey-Seybold 5615 Kirby Drive, Suite 660, Houston, Texas 77005
Fort Bend Education Foundation 16431 Lexington Boulevard, Sugar Land, Texas 77479
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