In Loving Memory of Donald Lee
Donald Lee was born on April 21, 1951 in Oakland, California. He passed away on May 21, 2021 at the age of 70. He is survived by his wife Tetiana Lee, his three children, his daughter Kelita Lee, his son, his daughter Larissa Lee and his grandson Brandon Lee; his siblings Daniel Lee, David Lee, and Victoria Lee as well as many aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews and cousins.
Don was first generation born in the United States after his parents emigrated from China in 1936. Don was the second born of four siblings to his parents Peter and Betty Lee. Growing up in Oakland as a Chinese-American with traditional values, he learned the benefit of hard work, respect and importance of family. During Don’s high school years he and his two brothers helped their father build their family home. Don had many passions and talents. He was the Captain of the Fremont High School gymnastics team in 1969 and won the California NORCAL Championship in the Pommel Horse. He also spent his free time playing the guitar in a rock band and performed at high school dances.
When Don was a teenager, he and his siblings met every Saturday with Lorraine Dennis to study the bible. At the age of 18 Don was baptized as one of Jehovah’s Witnesses. He later moved to Manhattan, Kansas where he served in the full-time ministry with his best friend and roommate, Paul Morrill. While in Kansas he married his first wife, Ruth Godfrey in 1973 and they had their first two children, Kelita and his son. Don was an entrepreneur at heart and he started his first business, Lee Janitorial, which he grew to ten employees.
In June 1979 Don and his family moved back to Oakland, California to be near his parents. One year later in 1980 he started his successful construction company, Lee Construction. Lee Construction flourished and is still in operation today. Don was always generous of his time and shared his skills with many. He taught Sarah Young, Wei Min and Wei Cheng his trade.
In 1982 they had their third child, Larissa. Don was a very attentive father to his children. He loved to play games with them when they were kids and loved the sound of laughter in his home. Don always had a love for nature and the outdoors. He spent many summers taking his family camping. His children have wonderful memories visiting Mt. Lassen, Yosemite, Yellowstone and many camping sites along California’s coastline and National Parks. On these many adventures Don always took the opportunity to teach his children facts about nature, history and specifics of every place they visited. He was truly a kid at heart and took his family to Disneyland and Knott’s Berry Farm more times than they can count. It made Don very happy that he was able to keep this tradition alive with his grandson, Brandon. The birth of his only grandson in 1996 brought another chance for Don to be a kid all over again. His children and grandson will always cherish feeling loved and accepted by their father and grandfather. They knew that he was proud of them and that he loved each one of them dearly.
Along with his passion for camping, Don had a desire to see the world and the many wonders it had to offer. On many occasions Don would cut out newspapers and magazine articles of places he dreamed of visiting. Don’s dream of traveling abroad became a reality later in life. It was after retirement that he was able to begin his new adventures across the globe. On one of his travels he met his second wife, Tetiana. In 2015, after their marriage took place, Don began his life of two homes, one in the United States and one in the Ukraine. Don was able to live out his dreams of traveling and exploration with his beloved wife and best friend, Tetiana and his children. One of Don’s favorite places to visit with Tetiana was Egypt where he got to enjoy the exotic oasis and landscape. He loved visiting Turkey where he got to experience new foods, culture and people. Don was able to share his love of the National Parks in America with Tetiana and build new memories of these wonderful places together. Don was also able to live out his dream of visiting Paris with his wife and children.
Don will be greatly missed by his wife, children, family, and friends who loved and deeply appreciated his warm, generous, and light hearted nature. Their cherished memories will forever be embedded in their hearts.
