Donald “Don” K. Bailey, age 91, of Seaford, DE passed away on Thursday, July 5, 2018.
Don was born on Christmas Day 1926 in Laurel DE, the son of the late Elbert C. Bailey Sr and Lucinda A. Kinder Bailey. He was the last of four sons and he grew up in Laurel during the great depression. During High School he worked at the Waller Theater during the great movie era as an usher, projectionist and Assistant Manager. Also at age 13 he became very enthusiastic about the art of photography establishing his own darkroom for processing film. In high school he earned the nick name “Snap Shot”. He graduated from Laurel High in 1944 and thirty days later entered the U. S. Army. After training in Georgia and Texas he served in the Western Pacific during WW II and after the war’s end in Hawaii.
He attended St. Bonaventure College in western New York and later graduated from the National School of Photography in Washington DC. When a career in photography seemed less likely he turned to DuPont where he spent the next 38 years as an operator, technician, supervisor and engineer at Seaford. It was at DuPont where he met his wife to be, Kathryn Flurer, from Princess Anne, MD. They married in April of 1952 and spent the next 58 years working, volunteering and traveling across America and most of the world, such places as Europe, South America, Australia, New Zealand, Tahiti, Soviet Union and China.
After retirement he continued to volunteer with Stream Watch, Host Program at Seaford Middle School, Osprey Surveys on the Nanticoke and Broad Creek Rivers, tours for AARP, Adopt A Highway and Delaware Hospice.
He was a member of the Sierra Club, Audubon Society, and Nature Conservancy.
He is survived by his daughter-in-law, Thelma White, grandchildren, Eric White, Robert Chadwick and Jennifer Hausman and great-grandchildren, Myles and Maura Chadwick, Ryan and Madison Hausman and nephew Craig Bailey. His wife Kay passed away in 2010.
Graveside Services with Military Honors will be on Thursday, July 12 at 1 PM at Odd Fellows Cemetery, Stein Hwy, Seaford.
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