- Date Of Birth: February 1, 1917
- Date Of Death: April 10, 2010
- State: Connecticut
Donald W. Henry, 93, of Middlebury, Connecticut, died on April 10, 2010 at the Lutheran Home in Southbury. He is survived by his wife of 66 years, Jean V.S. Henry; son Paul W. Henry and his wife, Susan Hackley; son Charles W. Henry and his wife, Lynn Franklin-Henry; five grandchildren, Brooke Manfredi and her husband Kevin, Alexander Henry, Lauren Henry, Noah Henry-Darwish and Autumn Henry-Darwish; and two stepgrandchildren, Zac Johnson and Daphne Berger. He was predeceased by his son John R. Henry II and daughter Anne L. Henry.
Mr. Henry, the son of Reverend Dr. John and Louise Henry, was born and raised in New York City. He graduated from Phillips Academy Andover (President of the Class of ’35), Yale University (’39) and Yale Law School (’42). An avid athlete, Don not only played football at Yale, but also earned All-American status as captain of the Yale lacrosse team. Mr. Henry served in the U.S. Navy in WWII as a Lieutenant and PT Boat commander in both the Pacific and Mediterranean, where he was injured and awarded the Purple Heart and Bronze Star.
Perhaps best known for his love of the mountains, Don started his hiking career at age 60 with his first attempt of the Matterhorn in Switzerland. From there he embarked on treks to Mont Blanc, Mt. Hood, Mt. Elbrus, Aconcagua and the base camps of Mt. Everest and K-2, culminating with his ascent of the 20,320-foot Mt. McKinley at age 71 in 1988. At the time he was the oldest person to make that ascent, a record which he held for 16 years.
Don was an active member of the community, serving as Town Counsel of Middlebury and President of the Waterbury Hospital, The Waterbury Foundation and the Highfield Club. He was a senior partner of the law firm Gager, Henry & Narkis of Waterbury, and during his career was Chairman of the Board of Colonial Bank and a Director of The Eastern Company, Waterbury Savings Bank, Westover School, The Cly-Del Manufacturing Company, The Homer D. Bronson Company, Eyelematic Manufacturing Company, Keeler & Long, Inc., The Risdon Manufacturing Company and Root & Boyd, Inc.
