- Date Of Birth: December 18, 1930
- Date Of Death: June 18, 2016
- State: Idaho
On June 18, 2016, at the age of eighty-five, Donald Odin Isaacson of Whidbey Island, Washington, and Caldwell, Idaho, passed away surrounded by his family.
Don was a wonderful son, husband, father, and grandfather. He is survived by his wife, Meta Isaacson, daughters, Kathleen Jo (Douglas) Amberson, Anna (John) Orrison, grandsons, Jacob (Katie) Amberson, Caleb Amberson, Joshua (Taryn) Amberson, John Orrison, Joseph Orrison, and three great grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his parents, Conrad and Helen Isaacson, and his son, Donald Conrad Isaacson.
Donald and Meta celebrated their fiftieth wedding anniversary on June 11, 2016.
Don grew up during the depression. He lived with his parents on his grandparents’ farm outside of Everett, Washington. As a young child, he loved to fish in the small streams that ran through the farm and work alongside his grandfather milking cows. He was enriched by the kindness of this grandmother who was very fond of him. It was here that he learned the value of a dollar, hard work, and the joy of family.
His parents moved to Beacon Hill, Seattle, in the had a love of history and shared stories and memories from that time with his family. Together with his grandsons, he could be found watching favorite black and white movies and passing along history from this time period first hand.
His family fished in Alaska, and as a young boy he would meet the halibut boat that his father worked on as it came into the marina. He would help haul off fish, and later he, too, would fish. He always had a love for the sea and the biological diversity of Puget Sound.
He graduated from Cleveland High School in Seattle, and went off to college. He was drafted into the Army and served in Germany, where he was selected to play football on the company team. He was flattered that he was playing with men who had played professionally and at the college level. This love of athletics followed him as he returned from the military and completed his teaching degree.
Don taught high school sciences for forty years; his favorite course was biology. He taught at Tahoma, O’Dea and Mercer Island High Schools. He coached football (his favorite), track, baseball, and softball. Most importantly, with hours of playing catch in the yard, he taught his daughters to throw a baseball “like a boy.”
Don wasn’t planning on leaving us so soon. He would have rather gone golfing, watched some baseball, and had a great fish dinner with his family. Our family will miss his strong presence as a loving husband, father, and grandfather.
