Donald Crawford Gum

He was preceded in death by his father, Dale, and mother Chessa; sisters, Marilyn and Becky; and brother, Robert.

Don is survived by his sons, James and Philip; and his longtime friend and companion, Leslie.

Don started life in Bartow, West Virginia, where his family owned a store then a farm. While still in school his family moved to Ohio to pursue other opportunities. After attending high school, he entered the workforce.

Like many men of his generation, Don was drafted into the U.S. Army and served his time honorably before returning to the workforce.

Don filled many roles during his life as a son, a brother, an uncle, a husband, a father, a friend and a mentor. Beneath the tough exterior was a caring man who loved his family.

As a father, he and his ex-wife raised two boys in Ohio and Arizona. For all those life lessons and love we are eternally grateful. But he was also a father figure and mentor to many others, “Telling It Like It Is” whether we wanted to hear it or not. Most often he was right!

Don was a hard-working man who sacrificed for his family as an over the road truck driver to provide for his family. At one point the commute to work was a five-hour one-way drive; he did this so his family could remain close to other family members in the boys’ hometown.

When he got to Arizona in the late 1980s he gave up trucking to pursue a career as a maintenance worker for a local school district. He remained with that profession until he

retired.

Don loved working in the family garden and attending to home details fixing, maintaining, and keeping his house in order. He was very particular about his well-manicured yard.

Don was a vehicle and motorcycle enthusiast owning many types throughout his life — cars, trucks, tractors and motorcycles.

For a time, both he and Leslie had Harleys and took various trips together.

Christmas was always special to Don. He always liked to decorate the house inside and out including the Christmas tree every year. He made sure his boys had a great Christmas every year, toys-a-plenty when they were young.

Don loved to hang lights and other decorations on his house until he couldn’t then just decorated inside, so many decorations to admire. Don was known as Mr. Christmas by his friends at the school where he worked for many years.

During his long illness Don was cared for by his wonderful friend and companion Leslie. His life was so much richer knowing her and spending 28 years together enjoying each-others company.

Thank you for all the things you did to teach me about life and living.

Thank you for being my dad. I love you Dad, you will be missed.

The family would like to convey their most sincere appreciation to the staff at Hospice of the Valley. Their caring compassion was so wonderful and appreciated.

There will be no funeral services at his request.