Donald P. Steele

Donald Parker Steele, 84, of Fort Myers, Fla., died Saturday, June 5, 2004.
Born in Williamstown, Mass., on March 19, 1920, he was the son of John and Marion (Reagan) Steele. He graduated from the former Williamstown High School in 1938 and attended Williams College before joining the military.
An Army Air Corps veteran of World War II, he attained the rank of master sergeant. He was a member of the 19th Pursuit Squadron stationed at Wheeler Field on Oahu when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941, earning a Purple Heart for injuries he sustained. He was also at the Battle of Midway Island.
After the war, he and his family settled in West Springfield, where Mr. Steele worked for several area fuel companies, including Esso, Texaco and Paragon Oil. After moving to Florence, Mass., in 1967, he became president of the former Kimball and Cary Fuel Co. and an active member of the community.
He was a charter member of the College Church in Northampton, Mass., which was founded in 1972, and a member of the MacGregor Baptist Church in Fort Myers. He was also president of the southwest Florida Chapter 5 Pearl Harbor Survivors’ Association, a Mason and a Shriner.
His first wife, Jean (Nelson) Steele, also a Williamstown native, died in 1988.
He leavs his second wife, Muriel Satlawa Norris Steele of Fort Myers; a son, William Steele of Easthampton, Mass.; three daughters, Marion Voisine of Peoria, Ariz., Ellen Many of Delmar, N.Y., and Cynthia Kolodzinski of Florence, Mass.; 12 grandchildren, Cynthia, Amy and Sarah Voisine, Kelly White, Erin Many, Caitlin Klinedinst, Bethany Kleeberg, Daniel and Lauren Kolodzinski, Donald, William and Brian Steele; six great-grandchildren, Benjamin and Caleb Voisine-Addis, Hannah LeClaire-Voisine, Madeline and Emma Kleeberg and Caroline White.
A grandson, David A. Kolodzinski, died in 1997 and a brother, John Steele, died in 1977.
FUNERAL NOTICE -- A memorial service for Donald Steele will be held Saturday, June 19, 10 a.m., at the First Congregational Church of Hadley, 102 Middle St., Hadley, Mass.
Donations may be made to the David A. Kolodzinski Scholarship Fund, c/o Principal, Northampton High School, 380 Elm St., Northampton, MA 01060.