- Date Of Birth: December 12, 1934
- Date Of Death: July 3, 2017
- State: Michigan
Don McKenney, 82, of Midland passed away quietly at home on Monday, July 3, 2017, after a short experience with pancreatic cancer. He was born and raised in Chicago, Illinois. He grew up on the south side of the inner city (Englewood). He graduated from Chicago Vocational High School having received training in woodworking, machine shop and mechanical drafting. These basic skills enhanced his entire life. He proceeded to attend the Illinois Institute of Technology in Chicago and received a B.S. in Chemical Engineering.
After graduation in 1956, he accepted a job with The Dow Chemical Company in Midland, MI. There he spent 18 months in the Dow Special Projects program, spending several weeks in each of the various departments learning about Dow. In 1958 he was assigned to a research position in the Polystyrene Lab working on polystyrene and Styrofoam projects. This started a series of job opportunities including manufacturing (process engineering, assistant plant superintendent and plant superintendent). He then moved to the Economic Evaluation function in the Midland Division and ultimately to senior Economic Evaluation positions in the then Corporate Product Department and finally to the U.S. Area Product Department where he retired in 1990 after 34 years with Dow.
Shortly after arriving in Midland he met the love of his life, Shirley, who had recently arrived from Chariton, Iowa with a B.S. in Chemistry from the University of Iowa to work for Dow. They were married in September 1958.
He enjoyed many happy years with his active family, traveling to many national parks, camping on weekends in Michigan, and doing other activities together. He also enjoyed fly fishing on Michigan trout streams and in Yellowstone National Park. He was an avid tennis player for many years, playing regularly with the Tuesday/Thursday group at the Midland Community Tennis Center where they regularly solved many of the world’s problems over coffee after tennis.
He was preceded in death by his devoted mother, Nellie McKenney and his father, Thomas McKenney.
He is survived by his wonderful, caring and loving wife of 58 years, Shirley, and three devoted children, Curtis (Mary Kay) of Duluth, GA, Douglas (Julie) of Eden Prairie, MN and Lisa McKenney of Midland; his four grandchildren Tori, Kelcie, Christopher and Nicolas; his three siblings, Mary Louise Sheline of Three Rivers, MI, Thomas McKenney of Ridgway, CO and Anne Brown of Granger, IN.
