Family and community mourn passing of Don Fitzgerald

On the night of September 19, the lives of two stalwart Claytonians came to an end.

At just about 10:30, the majestic oak that stood watch for several hundred years over what is now Lydia Lane Park came crashing down across the creek – a thunderous end to a long, enduring watch.
Just minutes later, but with much less noise, Donald Edward Fitzgerald quietly breathed his last, ending an equally enduring life as a husband, father, friend and community leader.

“A man that showed us all how to do it,” said Father Richard Mangini, pastor at St. Bonaventure’s Catholic Church where Don had served on the Parish Council and in too many ministries to count.

Don was born in 1935 in Buffalo, New York. He joined the U.S. Marines straight out of high school when he was just 17. He served in Korea near the end of the conflict and finished out his service stationed in Hawaii.

After his discharge, he returned to New York where he met Gail, who would become his wife of 58 years. They were married just three months and 19 days after they met. “We never looked back.”
By 1978, they had four children and moved to Clayton. They joined the Clayton Business and Professional Association, the predecessor to the present day CBCA and began a long career of community service. In 1995, after the pair attended several festivals around the area, Don decided Clayton needed its own Art and Wine. He and Gail and a group of locals met with an event consultant who told them they would need several thousand dollars to start and could expect to lose money for at least three years. Ignoring this advice, Don and his committee went ahead with practically no money and a few volunteers. With just 25 vendors, that first Art and Wine netted $20K.

Although I had known Don for many years, it wasn’t until we started the Clayton Pioneer that I began to understand just how deep was his reach. Just as the roots of that old oak held fast for centuries against storms, earthquakes and fire, Don stood strong up to every challenge—including cancer—with an enduring spirit. He never let illness define him.
As he fought his own battles with cancer four different times, he served as support and inspiration to others as president of the board of the Contra Costa Crisis Center and a volunteer with the Wellness Center, now Cancer Center, in Pleasant Hill.

Don shone with a bright light. Regardless of how he might be feeling at the moment, he connected with whoever he was speaking to. No matter how my day was going, whenever I saw Don, it got better.
Don’s professional career included 25 years as an account executive with the 3M Company. Early in their marriage, he also served with the Air Force National Guard for three years.

Don is survived by Gail, his children Kimberly Fitzgerald-Wermes and her partner Pam; Kathy Fitzgerald Burkin and her husband Jim; Kevin and his wife Dana and Kyle Fitzgerald; five grandchildren, two great-grandchildren and his sister Linda Savage.

Memorials may be made to the St. Bonaventure’s Food Pantry, the Faith Formation Program or to Hospice of the East Bay.