Donald McKerchar McDONALD

A tribute to Donald McDonald:

The epitome of MODESTY.

One could not attribute the musical abilities of his children to Donald for he was a man who did not blow his own trumpet.

And yet here was a man who was:
 An exemplary husband, father, grandfather, brother, brother-in-law, uncle and friend.
 Reputable farmer
 Tomato grower extraordinaire.

But no, Donald was not one to boast about any of his many abilities or achievements. Except on one occasion when he did quietly tell me how when doing his compulsory military training at Burnham Military Camp, he was the savior of the Colonel’s marque. This was about to fall; the Colonel would not be able to host dignitaries. But then Private McDonald came to the rescue, and by using a figure eight knot in the wire, the marque was standing. That was the only time I ever heard Donald extol his virtues.
This talented man, yes, the Dux of Pine Bush School, did not need a university education after leaving Southland Boy’s High School to work on the family farm. He was adept at many skills and this was most evident in his two careers of farming and then tomato growing. He could turn his hand to anything from wall papering, concreting to mention just two.
But Donald was a private man. He did not like a fuss being made of him. He was the epitome of modesty.
And so, it is his choice, that at his time when we say our final goodbyes to him, there is no fanfare.
And to me, while this is the very nature of the man, it does deny others to express to his family, what a great guy he was.
I doubt he ever expressed a contemptible word about anyone.
The world would only be a much better place if it were filled with Donald McDonalds. A man of peace, charity and much under rated ability.
Rest in peace you good bugger.

Uncle Donald you will be so sadly missed, I can never thank you enough for all you and Aunty Elma have done for me and my family. You are really one of a kind, the only thing that makes us feel better, is that you and Aunty Elma will be together again
Love from Debbie and Ewen

I will miss you Donald, I know though you will be very happy to be with Elma. Shelley will be very pleased to have her Uncle Donald back. You will be in our hearts forever ❤️ Love Val

Dear Marylyn, Erice, Kenneth, Alton and families

We were very sorry to hear of your dads passing.
We have many lovely memories of him and of course your dad and our mum were very close. We think the two of them were quite similar in temperament and interests - like mum he loved his family, loved growing things and he appeared to be happy with his own company. Mum ( and Dad) were always interested in how the tomatoes and potatoes were growing and there was a bit of friendly rivalry too. And they both loved their holidays on the Gold Coast.
We remember as youngsters walking up from Grandma and Pops house to your house. There was always something interesting going on, including a swimming pool in latter years and your Dad was always a very welcoming and friendly presence.
Mum of course is feeling very sad but we said we would write and send her love to you all. We had a nice reminisce about her memories of her kind and gentle brother.

Sending our love to you all at this sad time

Joy, Gillian ( and Daphne)

I met Donald briefly while visiting another person at Vickery Court. Because of our shared surname, we were able to have a great conversation about our ancestors and times gone by.
Although he was not up to date with the McKerchar clan he expressed his knowledge and interest of his
ancestors.
Rest in peace.

Thank you, Uncle Donald, for all you did for and with us.
We were very fortunate as children to have many great holidays on the farm with you and Aunty. As “townies” we got to experience things we would have never been able to do in town and you always encouraged us to have a go. Even if we made a mistake you would calmly laugh and explain how to fix things and we all learnt a lot.
I was always amazed that as well as a farmer, you were a great gardener, engineer and builder all in one. I remember the runny porridge, burnt toast and weak tea for breakfast to start the day and the banter we had over that.
The memories of these times on the farm will remain with me for all my life.
As we grew up & family expanded, Aunty & you moved to town., our family was always made welcome whenever we visited, we all enjoyed those family times celebrating the many milestones along the way.
We will always remember you as a hard worker, someone who was generous in every way, patient, and with a good sense of humour.
To Kenneth, Erice, Marylyn, Alton and your families our deepest sympathies, our thoughts are with you all.

It is comforting to know he will now be reunited with Aunty .

Love Brendan, Diane, Sarah, Hannah, & Callum Copeland

Saying Uncle Donald was kind, giving, and nice is an understatement. There really are not enough words to convey the true Uncle Donald. Uncle Donald was such a rare and special person.

He was always happily in the background enjoying the boisterous antics of others. Never any harsh or criticising words spoken. All were accepted for who and what they are.

I have so many happy memories of holidays at the farm.

I know Mum was devastated on hearing about Uncle Donald's health. Mum really valued Donald as a person. He was not just a relative by marriage he was a brother by choice. Mum also admired the way Uncle Donald loved and cared for Aunty.

So while he may not have been the noisiest family member, his absence will be felt by all.

We were truely so very lucky to have been able to call him Uncle.
Rest easy. Love to the family
Rochelle