Donald Maffly

Donald Herrick Maffly Don Maffly yielded his life to complications arising from bile duct cancer on October 18, 2010, at his home in Lafayette. Don was born March 31, 1935 and raised in Berkeley, the son of Alfred and Frances Maffly. He is survived by his devoted wife Valerie and five children, Donald Jr. (Yachin) of Portland, Oregon; Brian (Diane) of Salt Lake City; Elizabeth Lovell (Matthew) of Vancouver, Washington; Joshua (Mary) of Davis, California; and Jeffrey of Twin Falls, Idaho. He is also survived by his eight grandchildren, Nicholas and Zo Lovell, and Gabriella, Luke, Nathaniel, Annabelle, Aryana and Emilio Maffly. He was predeceased by his sister Jean Wight and survived by his brother Roy (Marilyn) of Palo Alto. Don graduated from Berkeley High School, received a B.A. degree from Yale University (where he was a resident of Davenport College), an M.A.L.D. degree from Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy (Tufts University), and an LL.B. degree from the University of California at Berkeley School of Law (Boalt Hall). In college he was an editor of the Yale Daily News and in law school he was Note and Comment Editor of the California Law Review and a member of Order of the Coif, an award of academic excellence. After law school, Don served as law clerk to Justices Roger Traynor and Matthew Tobriner of the California Supreme Court and for the following three years was a deputy attorney general in the California Department of Justice. For the next 40 years he practiced civil and business law with the San Francisco firm of Chandler, Wood, Harrington and Maffly. During his law career, Don served as president of the Barristers Club of San Francisco and later as a member of the Board of directors of the Bar Association of San Francisco. He also served as a member of the Board of Governors of the C.G. Jung Institute of San Francisco. Classical music was always an essential part of his life; for many years he was a subscriber to the concerts of the Philharrmonia Baroque Orchestra. He retired from the practice of law in 2005. After his cancer diagnosis, Don's primary focus and energy shifted from matters of the outer world to an inner world where guidance came from dreams and images of being taken to another realm. What also emerged for Don during this time was the necessity to mend and cherish his relationships with family members and close friends. He left this life living fully each day, not fearful of death, but ready to accept its inevitability with grace and a sense of peace. There will be a memorial service at the Brazilian Room in Tilden Park, Berkeley, Calif. on Wednesday, Nov. 3 at 11:30 a.m. The Brazilian Room is located at the intersection of Shasta and Wildcat Canyon roads. Valet parking will be provided. The family requests that any donations in his memory be sent to Cancer Support Community, 3276 McNutt Avenue, Walnut Creek, CA 94597; Vitas Hospice Care, 365 Lennon Lane, Walnut Creek, CA 94598; or the C.G. Jung Institute of San Francisco, 2040 Gough Street, San Francisco, CA 94109.