Leon A. Donaldson

Leon A. Donaldson passed away on September 13, 2024, just 79 days before his 104th birthday in Knoxville, Tennessee. Leon's wife of more than 72 years preceded him in death exactly 4 months earlier.
Born in Celina, Tennessee to James Walter and Annie (Chilton) Donaldson. Leon was preceded in death by all ten of his brothers and sisters. They were Bureah, Martha Kathleen, Ben Allen, Lila Jean, Mabel, John Chilton (JC), Charles Thomas, Alfred, Junior, and Varney Edward.
Leon is survived by children, James (Onnolee) of Green, OH, Jack (Teri) of Massillon, OH, and Janis (John) Ragsdale of Knoxville, TN; very special "adopted" daughter, Juli (Keith) Presley of Knoxville, TN; granddaughters, Melissa Burris (Luke) of Akron and Jacqueline Collins (Kevin) of Massillon; grandson, Josiah Donaldson of Tuscaloosa, Alabama; great grandchildren, Draven and Addison Burris (Melissa), Kalix and Arabella Collins (Jacqueline), and Leon, Penny, and Walter Donaldson (Josiah).
Longtime residents of Green, Ohio, Margaret and Leon were married October 14, 1951 at the Evangelical United Brethren (EUB) Church in Greensburg, Ohio. Leon and Margaret attended there for more than 40 years before relocating to Knoxville where they attended West Park Baptist.
Leon was a loving and devoted husband and father. He will be greatly missed by his family and friends. He had a wonderful sense of humor and played cut-throat SKIPBO. Though he never spoke of his military service, Leon served as a Radio Technician in WWII, later teaching his Morse code skills to Boy Scouts at the Greensburg Church, where he and Margaret were active as the head greeters until moving south in 1993. The EUB and Methodist churches merged in 1968 to become the United Methodist Church.
Leon was a member of the Coventry-Akron Masonic Lodge #83 for more than 50 years.
The family would like to thank Trinity Medical, particularly Dr. Randy Pardue and his nurse Julie for taking care of him over the years. Special thanks to Krystal Restrepo and Rebbecca Johnson from FirstLight Home Care, and Adina, Markeesha, Tee, and Tiffany from Amedisys. Thanks are also extended to the many friends and family members who have visited and loved him over the years.
Per his request, Leon has been cremated. The visitation will be from 12:00 to 1:00pm at Click Funeral Home Farragut Chapel on Saturday, September 28, 2024. Military honors and a joint memorial service for Leon and Margaret will begin at 1:00pm. A private interment with no services will take place at East Tennessee Veteran's Cemetery on Monday afternoon.
Online condolences may be sent to Leon's family at www.clickfh.com where memorial pages for both Margaret and Leon may be found.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in his memory to West Park Baptist Church, Knoxville, TN or Greensburg United Methodist Church, Green, OH.