Aug. 3, 1922 - Jan. 6, 2013
Oregon native and business leader Donald Brown Stockton died Sunday, January 6, at his home in Albany. He was 90.
Don was born in Oakville to Otto and Hattie
Stockton, rye grass and dairy farmers in the Willamette Valley. He attended nearby Oakville elementary school, transferring to Corvallis for junior high and high school.
Don attended Oregon State University, and worked for Boeing and Kaiser Shipyards before joining the U.S. Army in 1943. He served in the 102nd Infantry, fighting in the Battle of the Bulge, and was awarded the Bronze Star Medal. After the armistice, he managed a Coca-Cola plant for the Allied Forces in Germany before returning home.
A successful entrepreneur, he established Stockton Furniture in Newport after the war. During the 1960s, he built the Oakvilla manufactured housing community in Oakville, and bought and operated the Willamette company, LimeCo. During the 1970s, he managed a real estate company in Maui, Hawaii. On return to the Pacific Northwest, he worked in real estate in Everett, Washington, with wife Judith Dawn Stockton, and then returned to Oakville where they raised sheep and cattle. And in 1985 they developed Lake Creek Ranch, a manufactured housing community in Tangent, which they operated until retirement in 2006.
Don was known for his keen intelligence, generous spirit and his contributions as a community leader. He served two terms as chairman of the Albany School Board and was on the Tangent City Council (1992-2002). He also was president of the Manufactured Housing Communities of Oregon, and a board member of Eagle Crest Resort in central Oregon. He was a licensed pilot, reflecting his lifelong love of flying.
Don was preceded in death by his parents; brother, Richard Stockton; first wife, Mary Helen Bogue Stockton, of Albany; and son, Michael. He is survived by wife, Judith Dawn Stockton; son, David Floyd Stockton, of Lebanon; and daughters, Mary Ann Stockton Brevidoro, of Albany, and Shirley Stockton Kickner, of North Albany; and three grandchildren.
At Don's request, no funeral service is planned. Please donate to a favorite charity in lieu of flowers. Online condolences may be left at www.fisherfuneralhome.com
