Alexander D McDonald

ALEX D. McDONALD, 82, passed away Thursday, May 31, 2012, at his home in Stamford. He was the son of the late Peter McDonald and Joan Smith McDonald, who immigrated to the United States from Scotland in the early 20th century.

Born and raised in Syracuse, NY, Alex graduated from Cornell University with a B.S. in Civil Engineering. After college, Alex worked as a structural engineer in Morocco designing airfields for use by the Strategic Air Command of the U.S. Air Force in response to the Korean War. Upon returning to the United States, he moved to New York City and joined a large engineering firm before moving to Stamford.

Alex and his family have lived in Stamford for more than 50 years, and much of the city's skyline is the legacy of his professional efforts. In 1972 he formed the structural engineering firm of McDonald & van der Poll with his good friend and business partner, Andy van der Poll. During the decades they worked together, the firm provided engineering services for many of the buildings that now define the city, including the Landmark Square complex, many of the office buildings and hotels along Tresser Blvd., the Stamford Center for the Arts, the Stamford Superior Court, the Stamford Landing complex, the Stamford Town Center and the High Ridge Office Park complex, among others.

He took significant pleasure in donating his professional services on projects like the Boys and Girls Club of Stamford, exhibit space at the Stamford Museum and Nature Center and the Holocaust Memorial in Scarsdale, NY.

In his retirement, Alex poured himself into his other passions. He wrote extensively as a poet, worked endlessly on his rose garden and became a gourmet cook. For many years his family could learn what was to be served for Sunday dinner by reading the recipes in that day's New York Times magazine.

For 47 years he was married to his loving wife, Anne Byrnes McDonald, who predeceased him. In addition to his parents and his wife, he was predeceased by his three sisters, Euphemia "Fay" Weaver, Margaret Solberg and Joan Bealer.

He is survived by his four children and their spouses: Peter McDonald and his wife, Nancy, of Monroe; Annie McDonald and her husband, Ted Marcuccio, of Rockville, MD; Walter McDonald and his wife, Narci, of Stamford; and Andrew McDonald and his husband, Charles Gray, of Stamford. He is also survived by his grandchildren, Alexandra Marcuccio, Melissa Marcuccio, Annemarie McDonald, John McDonald and Jason Smith. He is also survived by many nieces and nephews.

Friends may call at the Leo P. Gallagher & Son Funeral Home, 2900 Summer Street, Monday, June 4, 2012 from 4-8 PM. There will be a service at the funeral home for Alex's family and friends on Tuesday, June 5, 2012 at 10 AM. Burial will follow at Queen of Peace Cemetery in Stamford. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Save the Children at 54 Wilton Road, Westport, CT 06880 or online at www.savethechildren.org. Online condolences may be left at www.leopgallagherstamford.com.