Major Paul Donald Luce

1935 - 2017
Born in Connellsville, Pennsylvania, Don grew up in nearby Perryopolis, the son of Paul Olin Luce and Mattie Lee Ames. He attended Penn State and Indiana University of Pennsylvania before joining the United States Air Force in 1955. He was stationed first at Stewart Air Force Base in New York, where he flew in B-57 Canberra bomber jets as a navigator and electronic warfare officer. In the mid-1960s he studied meteorology at San Jose State University, and after a year in Korea from 1966 to 1967, he spent the rest of his Air Force career at Mather Air Force Base in Rancho Cordova, California, as a weather forecaster. He retired from the Air Force in 1977, and then began a second career as an engineer at Overhead Door Corporation.

Don loved traveling the world with his wife, Audrey, salmon fishing in Alaska with his brother, Ames, and doting on his grandchildren, Ryan and Toby. An enthusiastic tennis player and fan for 50 years, he attended Wimbledon numerous times, as well as the Australian Open. He enjoyed Sundays on the couch watching football, and was a San Francisco 49ers fan long before they became a winning team. He also loved being on the water; he designed several sailboats (including one with wings), and sailed around the world many times in his dreams.

Don is survived by his wife of 55 years, Audrey Winsky Luce, children Kristin and Donald, son-in-law Bill Grout and daughter-in-law Elizabeth Tobias, grandchildren Claire Rietmann-Grout, Ryan Rosemary Grout, and Toby Luce, brother Ames Luce, sister-in-law Connie, nephew Doug, and niece Laura. He is also remembered fondly by many friends across the years and miles.

The family would like to thank the caregivers at Brookdale Roseville, whose kindness and humor kept Don comfortable and content in his last few years. Interment will be at the Sacramento Valley National Cemetery in Dixon, California.

"For life and death are one, even as the river and the sea are one."
–Kahlil Gibran