Donald Edward Kuykendall

Everyone knew Don. He was a fixture in Sutherlin as he talked to anyone and everyone along his several mile walking route. The Sutherlin Garden Society honored him for his efforts to keep the area nice as he picked up bottles and cans. The policemen knew Don as he turned in wallets he found. He teased all the waitresses and store clerks who enjoyed the always outgoing customer.
Donald Edward Kuykendall was born in Kendrick, Idaho September 22, 1925. He was the youngest of four sons born to Leatha Lillian Fowler and Elbert Lawrence Kuykendall. At the age of 14, Don manned a forest service fire lookout in the Idaho mountains.
When the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor, Don was just 16 but had his mother sign a paper so he could enlist in the Navy. What training he has was on board ship on the way. He arrived in Pearl Harbor as the bombed ships still smoldered. Before he turned 17 he has been from Alaska to Hawaii to Australia. He was certified "Gun Director" and drove amphibious landing barges delivering troops to Saipan, Iwo Jima, Guadalcanal and Guam. He participated in 10 major battles in the Pacific serving on the USS Beckham and the USS Indianapolis.
After his service Don returned to Idaho and worked in a logging camp where he met Patricia Arlene Flaig who was serving meals in the dining hall. There were married September 1, 1946.
Sixty-two years of marriage followed. Their children are Gary Leith (his children are Jason, Jadia, Joseph and Stephanie), David Edward married to Connie (children, Amie and Jeffrey, Amie's children are Andrew and Molly), Peggy Lynn married to Paul Wallace (children, Emily and Wesley) and Ronald Alan married to Shawn (child, Seth).
Career: Don trained at Farragut College in Idaho for the automotive industry. While working at a Lewiston auto dealership Don was hired by Chrysler Corporation working his way up from District Manager to Service Zone Manager in Portland. He retired in 1980 after 23 years.
Don and Pat then bought an RV park in Port Orford, Oregon and operated it for 10 years. While there Don served as a volunteer fireman and was a well-known fixture at Chamber of Commerce meetings as a local businessman.
In 1990 Don and Pat, with their grandson Jason, moved to Sutherlin. Still not ready to sit back and rest, they took Red Cross training and worked locally as well as traveling to disasters in the U.S. and abroad.
Don and Pat continued to travel for many years with their RV seeing most of the U.S. and then to far places like Europe and Australia. Don often said to Pat in his final years, "We've had a good life."