Our husband, father, brother, grandfather, and great-grandfather, went home to be with his Lord and Savior on Saturday evening, April 27th, 2013 at the age of 86. He was in the company of family as he surrendered a long battle with Alzheimer’s at the Odyssey Hospice House in San Antonio. Don was born on January 4th, 1927 in Los Angeles, CA. He was the oldest of three children born to Don and Frances (Lundberg) Champion.
Don grew up in southern California and entered the U.S. Navy early to attempt to be a part of World War II. He ended up honorably serving our nation without having to see any action in wartime. He later graduated with a degree in Chemistry from Texas Wesleyan University in Ft. Worth. Don went on to become a business owner and salesman – representing various electronics, engineering and robotics companies, including top secret programs for defense contractors and NASA. He lived a full life, spending time from California to Florida, with the majority of his time being in North Texas around Dallas-Ft Worth and Plano. Don moved with his wife Nancy (Copeland) to her family farm in Blanco in 2011. He is preceded in death by two very special individuals in his life, his son, Cal, and his sister, Sue.
Don’s life is best remembered for his love of family and friends. He developed a deep appreciation for Jazz and Big-Band music early on that entertained him all the way through the advanced stages of Alzheimer’s. Don was a man with “his own sense of style” who enjoyed photography, bird watching, being in the outdoors, and building things with his hands. Being a Navy man – he always maintained a deep love for boats, but nothing brought him more joy than fishing with family and friends, and taking his grandkids to baseball games or out for ice cream. While Alzheimer’s took its toll in his later years, he always maintained his charming and witty personality.
Don is survived by his wife of 45 years, Nancy Champion of Blanco, TX; one sister, Carol Callaway of Indian Wells, CA; three daughters and one son, Debbie Katz of CA, Dona Brown and husband Charlie of Sarasota, FL, Jan Torres and husband Louie of McKinney, TX, and Chris Champion and wife Dawn of Blanco, TX; along with 11 grandchildren; Brett Sherman, Erin, Chris Usher, Brady Usher, Brent Usher, Mindi Soto, Matt Champion, Madison Torres, Ashton Schutza, Brett Champion and Christyn Champion; and finally 8 great-grandchildren, Mason, CJ, Chloe, Alex, Elliott, Tyler, Mayci, and Evah.
The family would like to thank the wonderful First Baptist Church family in Blanco, along with Crofts-Crow Funeral Home for all of their support. We would also like to extend our deepest, heart-felt appreciation to all of the loving and caring servants at both Heart to Heart Hospice and Odyssey Hospice House, who took such amazing care of our entire family during his last battles with Alzheimer’s. We simply cannot say thank you enough for the Christ-like love and compassion of the hospice care-givers.
Finally the family prays you will join us for a celebration of Don’s life and memorial service to be held 11:00AM on Saturday, May 4th, 2013 at First Baptist Church Blanco, 1200 4th St., Blanco. There will be a reception for all family and friends immediately following the service. In lieu of flowers, please feel free to make a memorial donation in Don’s name to; Gentiva Hospice Foundation, 7801 Mesquite Bend Drive, Suite 105, Irving, TX 75063, or Heart to Heart Hospice Foundation via their online form at: www.hearttoheart hospicefoundation.org/.
More from Obituaries.
