DONALD "Don" TRILLING

1928 - 2020

TRILLING DONALD R. TRILLING "DON" Don passed away at home in Alexandria, VA, of natural causes on October 22, 2020 at the age of 92. He was born January 23, 1928 in Philadelphia, PA where he grew up and graduated from Lower Marion High School in 1945. He was drafted into the Army at the outbreak of the Korean War in 1950. He attended Artillery OCS at Ft. Sill, Oklahoma followed by combat with the 555 Field Artillery Battalion of the 5th Regimental Combat Team as a forward observer. He was awarded a Bronze Star for meritorious service and three battle stars. Don received a BA (1956), and MA (1959) in Economics and a PhD in Business and Applied Economics (1969) all from the University of Pennsylvania. In 1958 he joined Westinghouse Electric Corporation where he spent 15 years as Manager of Management Sciences in corporate headquarters. In 1969, he was transferred to Washington, DC to start a new business arm doing management consulting to various Federal agencies. In 1973, Don joined the US Department of Transportation in the Office of the Secretary as member of the Senior Executive Service. During his 32 years of service at DOT, he was director of several offices In the Policy Office working on such issues as mobility for older adults, energy, climate change and transportation for those with disabilities. In 1978, and again in 1981 he received DOT's Silver Medal for Meritorious Achievement for his exceptional leadership and outstanding contributions to DOT's programs. In 1983, he was assigned a key role in organizing the Department's new office of space transportation, responsible for licensing launches of commercial satellites into space. From then on, his personal vehicle had Virginia license plate: FLY ELV (Expendable Launch Vehicles). This was a source of curiosity and teasing over the years. He was very fond of that period of his career at DOT and proud of their accomplishments. In 1969 he moved to the Mount Vernon area of Alexandria, where he could be seen running on the GW Parkway bike trail every Sunday morning where he became a celebrity of sorts, making many friends along the trail. He participated in the Army 10 miler for a number of years as well as the GW Parkway Classic race for 30-plus years. Pacers Running Stores who is a primary sponsor and organizer of the race, automatically gave Bib #1 to Don "not because he was the fastest runner, but the most senior and upbeat participant we have." He ended his race career participating in the Parkway 5K walk in April of 2019. He continued his Sunday ritual of exercise, walking five to seven miles until he became ill in October of 2019. He and his wife Shirley moved to Montebello condos in 1984 where they were involved invarious activities and committees. After his retirement in 2003, he became an active member of the editorial board and photo editor for the community newsletter. Surviving Don are Shirley, his wife of 45 years, five sons, eight grandchildren and eight great grandchildren. Due to the current pandemic, a memorial celebration of his life will be held at a later time.grandchildren. Due to the current pandemic, a memorial celebration of his life will be held at a later time.