Donald R. Weaver

1935 - 2020

Donald Ralph Weaver of Plymouth died peacefully on April 4, 2020. Son of Ralph and Eleanor Weaver of Plymouth, he was born July 7, 1935, one of four brothers (Rick, Donald, Roger and Duncan). He attended Plymouth High School, and was an active sailor and a lifelong member of the Plymouth Yacht Club. As a youth he was very active in the Boy Scouts and became an Eagle Scout and served in the National Guard. From 1954-1955 he was an official tour guide at Plymouth Rock, where he informed people on early Pilgrim history in which he was well-versed. In May 1957, at anchor in Plymouth harbor, he witnessed the arrival of the Mayflower II. As a teen he made the headlines in the local news for a solo bicycle trip he took from Munsonville, N.H., to Plymouth. He and his family were descendants of Stephen Hopkins, one of the original signatories of the Mayflower Compact in 1620. He was a member and volunteer of the General Society of Mayflower Descendants and contributed to the Mayflower Quarterly magazine. He earned a degree in mechanical engineering from Tufts University in Boston and enjoyed a long career as a marketing manager and mechanical engineer for several valve companies including Crosby Valves, Masoneilan, and the Norton Company. Don was an early employee at the McDonnell-Douglas aerospace company where he solved air-conditioning issues on the F/A-18 Hornets (Blue Angels) aircraft. He loved to tinker and build things. As a child he built model airplanes and ships; as an adult he built stereo speakers, sailboats, and even an iceboat. He was a patient teacher. Don travelled cross-country several times, raced sports cars in the mountains of California, and travelled to Europe on the Queen Elizabeth in 1961. He was an avid sailor and, but also enjoyed theater, hiking, tennis, and both downhill and cross-country skiing. He was a member of the Cannonball Ski Club, and an active member of the non-profit Bay Players community theatre. He was always up for adventure, whether it be vacationing in the Bahamas with his daughter, or white-water rafting with his son down the Grand Canyon. He was active in the First Parish Church of Norwell, Unitarian Universalist, and was married to Judi (Weaver) Fortin there. Although they later divorced, he remained on good terms with her, and her parents throughout his life. Don was spiritually curious and during the 1980s spent time in a Buddhist ashram, where he learned to meditate. Sailing was Don's great, lifelong passion, and he enjoyed racing, cruising, and day sailing. A highly capable sailor, he knew Plymouth Bay like the back of his hand, but also knew how to navigate up and down the New England coastline. Several times he organized cruises with friends and family up and down the Florida Intra-coastal Waterway, and along the Chesapeake Bay. He owned and sailed many boats in his life including a Tigercat and his beloved "Up Spirits". He founded Plymouth's Landfall Sailing Club in order to share his love of sailing and people, in his retirement. Don loved children and animals and refused to turn away from suffering when he encountered it. He volunteered and contributed to Winslow Farms animal shelter in Norton, and through Massachusetts School on Wheels, tutored homeless children and mentored homeless individuals. In later years he caned chairs for a living through his online business, Weaver Chair Caning, and travelled throughout New England to pick up and deliver chairs to people. He loved socializing, travelling, and getting to know people. He loved to dance, drink, and party, and refused to be pessimistic about people or life, even when he personally struggled. He was a kind, playful, and gentle soul and he will be missed. He is survived by his son, Roger Weaver of Seattle, WA, his daughter Janice Shanks, fianc Jason Labrecque, and stepchildren Hunter and Shane of Naples, ME, nieces and nephews Erik, Derek, Karen, Kim, and Nicole Weaver, and three grandchildren, Georgia, Chris, and Rachel Shanks, and his former wife Judi Fortin. Due to the current health crisis services will be private. Online condolences may be made at www.cartmelldavis.com.