Ellice McDonald Jr.

Ellice McDonald, Jr., CBE

Ellice McDonald, Jr., husband of deceased wife Rosa Laird Hayward McDonald, died peacefully at his home, "Invergarry" on 10 June 2013. He was 100 years old.

He was born in New York City on 22 May 1913, son of Canadian physician, Dr. Ellice McDonald and portrait artist, Ann Heebner McDonald. He was the grandson of Archibald McDonald who was born in Glencoe, Scotland, and was the last of the chief factors of the Hudson's Bay Company.

He attended Chestnut Hill Academy, Chestnut Hill, Pennsylvania, and received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Swarthmore College. Subsequently, he worked as an Industrial Engineer for the DuPont Company. In January 1941 he volunteered for the United States Army and served as a commissioned officer in the Pacific Theatre.

Ellice first met his wife, Rosa, in 1930 when he was sixteen, and they married in 1954. They shared a lifelong passion for cats and dogs and they adopted countless numbers of strays and rescue pets who happily shared their animal "bed and breakfast" with the occasional pure bred German Shepherd or Golden Retriever. His wife was a strong supporter of his Scottish interests.

In July 1976, he was appointed High Commissioner, Clan Donald, U.S.A. and served in that capacity until January 1, 1983. He also established the Glencoe Foundation as a private charitable foundation which made contributions to Scottish organizations such as the National Trust for Scotland, the Royal Caledonian Schools in Bushey, the Clan Donald Lands Trust on Skye.

A short time later he founded the sister organization, the Clan Donald Foundation which has now become the foremost Clan organization in the United States with several thousand members and approximately 95 commissioners in every State including Alaska and Hawaii.

In the early 1970's he became aware of the Clan Donald Lands Trust on Skye. He and Mrs. McDonald took a great interest in helping out this organization which still exists today.

On 13 December 1995, Her Majesty, the Queen, conferred on Ellice the title of Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (CBE). On 18 June 1992, a similar honour was bestowed upon his wife, Rosa. They are the only husband and wife in the North American Continent to have received this honour.

In 1978, Ellice established and became president of the Gurkha Welfare Trust Foundation (U.S.A.) which cooperated closely with the Canadian Gurkha Appeal.

In 1989, he was guest of honor of the Grandfather Mountain Highland Games in Linville, North Carolina. It is believed he is the first American to have been so honored.

He is survived by his step-daughter Nancy Lloyd Hayward and her husband Richard Stephen Dunn Johnson of New York City; his two step-sons, Nathan Hayward III and his wife, Marilyn Rushworth Hayward; Pierre duPont Hayward and his wife Martina Combs Hayward (all of Wilmington, Delaware); his step-son-in-law Christopher George Lewis Jones of Guilford, CT, widower to Rosa Hayward Jones who died in January 2006; and five grandsons: Nicholas Calder Lewis Jones of New York City; Laird Reed Hayward of San Francisco, CA; Nathan Hayward IV of Los Angeles, CA; Bradford Lloyd Hayward of Brooklyn, NY; and George Stewart Marshall Hayward, and his wife, Margaret Kelly Hayward of Washington, D.C.

His family want to express their gratitude to the staff and nurses who took such good care of Ellice in his final years.

The interment will be private. The family suggests gifts to Faithful Friends Animal Society, 12 Germay Drive, Wilmington, DE 19804.