IRWIN, Donald E. 1921-2009
IRWIN, JANSSEN, ROGERS, PETERSEN, HANGARTNER
Posted By: S. Bell
Date: 6/24/2010 at 17:23:46
[Waterloo Courier, Thursday, December 31, 2009]
CEDAR FALLS - Donald E. Irwin, 88, of Cedar Falls, died Monday, Dec. 28, 2009, at Sartori Memorial Hospital, Cedar Falls.
A beloved husband, father, grandfather, brother and treasured friend, Don’s good nature, quick wit, and kind/gracious spirit were well known to all. Don’s legacy as a War Hero, man of conviction and so much more will remain in our hearts and minds forever.
Don and his twin brother, Delbert, were born July 22, 1921, to Clyde and Bertha Janssen Irwin, on a farm 10 miles from Bellevue. He graduated from Andrew High School, Andrew, and later graduated with a BA degree in economics from Cornell College, Mount Vernon. His professional career was mainly in the advertising agency business, with most of those years as a vice president of Colle & McVoy Advertising Agency, Waterloo, based out of Minneapolis.
He married Faye Elizabeth Rogers of Mount Vernon on March 13, 1944. They were married for 57 years at the time of her death in May 2001.
He served in the U.S. Navy from 1942 to 1946. He received his U.S. Navy Officer’s Commission from the USNR Midshipman’s School at Columbia University, New York, N.Y. He commanded an amphibious ship that put troops and equipment ashore in the Normandy D-Day landing at Omaha Beach, and later served as Lieutenant JG aboard an amphibious ship in the South Pacific. Following his Navy service, he received an MA degree in advertising/journalism from the University of Iowa. Don had been an instructor and Director of Information at Parsons College, Fairfield, and was director of National Advertising at the Courier-Press Newspaper, Evansville, Ind.
Don was a past member of the Waterloo 250-member downtown Rotary Club for 25 years, and served as editor of the club’s newsletter published every Monday. He was past president and one of the founders of the Marketing and Advertising Club of Northeast Iowa, and past member of the Business Men’s Executive Advisory Council, School of Business at the University of Northern Iowa.
He served as vice president of the Military Officers Association of America, and was one of the five commissioners on the Black Hawk County Veteran Affairs Commission; developing and producing their newsletter - the VAC/YACK. Donald was a 53-year member of the American Legion and the Cedar Falls AMVETS Post No. 49.
He was a past member of the board of directors of Christian Crusaders Radio Ministry, past president of the Northeast Iowa Knife & Fork Club, and was on the board of directors of the Hawkeye Chapter of the American Red Cross. He had served on the board of directors of the Black Hawk County Council on Aging, and was on the board of directors of the site council of the Cedar Falls Senior/Community Center.
He helped develop a comprehensive pool program (billiards) at Cedar Falls Senior/Community Center, which included organizing monthly area tournaments. He also wrote and produced a monthly newsletter for the pool program.
He was a former member of the Waterloo Sunnyside Country Club, and present member of the Waterloo Elks Club.
Don was a longtime active member of Nazareth Lutheran Church, Cedar Falls.
Survivors include two daughters, Donna (Mark) Petersen of Cedar Falls and Debra (Steve) Hangartner of Watertown, Minn.; four grandchildren, Amber and Arielle Petersen, and Ryan and Patrick Hangartner; twin brother, Delbert (Sylvia) Irwin of Arlington, Texas; brother-in-law/good friend, Ralph Souders of Cedar Falls; and close friend, Nan Strein of Cedar Falls.
Preceded in death by his wife, Faye; and a daughter in infancy.
Services will be held 11 a.m. Monday at Nazareth Lutheran Church, with burial in Greenwood Cemetery, both in Cedar Falls. Military honors will be conducted by Cedar Falls AMVETS Post No. 49. Friends may call from 1 to 4 p.m. Sunday at Richardson Funeral Home, and for one hour prior to services Monday at the church.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be directed to the Cedar Falls AMVETS Post No. 49.
Correspondence may be directed to The Family of Don Irwin, c/o Donna Petersen, 110 Hidden Meadow Lane, Denver, IA 50622.
Black Hawk Obituaries maintained by Karen De Groote.
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