Donald A. Gardner Sr.

Dear Uncle Don,

Thinking of you, Dad, and Uncle Norman today, at Christmastime. Never were there a classier three. I will continue to live my life in a way that would make all of you proud, and I will continue to share your legacy with my children, who both had the pleasure of meeting you (and sharing your bag of candy:). I love you, now and forevermore.

Your nephew,
Teddy

"Uncle Don" was a rare breed of man, he was so very kind and could make you feel like you knew him your whole life even meeting for the first time. His outlook on life was always joyful, he had fun with what life had given him. His life among us will be deeply missed and will be all the sweeter when we meet again. Love Ky

Dear Uncle Don,

What a great time this has been to be able to share and spend with you. Thanks to you I have rediscovered my Syracuse roots. I visited the city for the first time in many years, saw the house Mom grew up, in visited our old house up on Broad Rd and got to visit and share time with you. It truly was a wonderful experience that I will never forget.

I do remember your visits to the house on Broad Rd also. We could always count on a Kennedy half dollar from Uncle...

Dear Uncle Don,
Wow! i have never met you, but i feel like i know you just as well. I have heard so many great things about you over the years from Melody...She's always talking about Uncle Don this,Uncle Don That...:)I wish I had an Uncle i could talk about so much. you should feel proud to know you were thought about and cared about as much as melody cared for you. I have this feeling that we will eventually meet, i dont know when, but if you see me before i see you, please say hello.

My thoughts are with the Gardner family during this time of loss, and I hope that you all continue to cherish all the happy memories you have collected over the years with Uncle Don.

Dear Uncle Don, I know you already know this, but I just wanted to tell you how deeply I love you and miss you. Every day is empty without you. I miss you terribly, but am trying to cherish all the memories we shared to keep my spirits up. On your birthday, in the morning, (before our Denny's gathering) I went to the Lion's Bridge with the birthday card that I bought for you, and read it outloud by the water. I only hope that you could hear it. I look forward to the day that we will meet...

Happy Birthday, dear Uncle Don! My entire family went to lunch at Denny's on Saturday in honor of your birthday. There were 14 of us to celebrate; you were dearly missed but fondly remembered (we came with photos and stories). We will love you and remember you always, my dear uncle and friend.

Love, your nephew, Teddy.

My condolences to the Gardner family and all who knew and loved Don. I was a close friend of Charlie Featherstone, his step-son with whom he shared his Dewitt home for quite some time. I have drifted away from them both over the years. I have been trying to find the time to reconnect lately, but now I've missed the opportunity to see Don again. Charlie, if you read this, do a Google search for me (or click "contact me", below) and leave me a message so I can find you again. I'm sure...

I have happy memories of time spent with Uncle Don over the years, especially while growing up. I'm so glad that my sisters, brother, cousins, and other family members got to speak with him during the Gardner Family Reunion last summer as he wasn't able to attend.

Rest in peace, Uncle Don; I love you.

Your niece, Norma