ForeverMissed
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***May 1st 4:00 online celebration registration
(Please register ahead of time in order to receive the link):
 https://www.transformwithintent.com/honoring-loss-kress

***Video from April 17th Service:  https://youtu.be/B7a6e8QfGBA
**************************************************************************

Donald G. Kress, 85, passed away March 15, 2021 in Loudon, TN. He had recently returned to TN, a place that was close to his heart, after living in Palm Beach Gardens, FL and Largo, FL for the past five years. He had semi-retired in TN (2005-2015) after spending most of his life in New Jersey.

A memorial service is planned for April 17 at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church, Basking Ridge, NJ. Due to COVID-19 restrictions, the attendance is limited; however, the service will be live streamed. If you are interested in attending please send an email to donkressmemorial@gmail.com.

A virtual remembrance will be held on Saturday, May 1st at 4:00 p.m. through Zoom. Details on both services will be posted here when available.

Should friends desire, memorial contributions may be made in honor of Donald G. Kress to any of the three churches where he was a member or the Delta Tau Delta Educational Foundation in Fishers, IN.

He is survived by a son, Donald Brian, a daughter, Catherine Mary, a granddaughter, Elizabeth, his beloved nieces, nephews, grandnieces, grandnephews, and countless extended family members and friends from all over the world.

The family wishes to thank all of the doctors and nurses who gave the best care to Don, as well as his friends in the FL retirement communities, and all of the friends and neighbors who helped him, especially with his most recent move to TN. There are so many people to thank. Please know how much Don loved you!

Tributes

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Shari Grant
April 8, 2021
April 8, 2021
Don was my first boss straight out of college. I joined Lynch Jones & Ryan and he taught me the Sales ropes. Selling came very naturally to him. He loved being around people and sharing stories. He became friends with many of his clients and was someone who always brought positive energy into a room. Don was a compassionate, kind, generous man. He was always running late, but still always happy to help someone in need...even if it made him more late. We hadn't spoken in about 20 years, and he recently crossed my mind. I thought about trying to track him down and thank him for taking me under his wing. I wish I was able to deliver that thank you. Don, I hope you are looking down, knowing that I did appreciate you. Love, Shari
Victoria Kress
March 30, 2021
March 30, 2021
Uncle Dad/Don -Been hard to post as I think through what an extraordinary impact he had in my life...He was vibrant and hilarious and generous and so full of life. When I lost my dad at 18, he took over the job, guiding me in career choices, listening to me cry over one broken heart after another, welcoming 2 out of wedlock babies as if they were his own grandkids, accepting my amends for being a little $h7t for a big part of my life, providing a vacation in Tennessee for a struggling single mom with 2 challenging tweens and calling me every year on my dads birthday to tell me how proud he would be of me. This year I called him and didn’t realize how sick he actually was(we talked days before and he was “going home tomorrow”)I love you so much Uncle Don, Rest In Peace. My condolences to his children,my cousins Don and Cathy and my cousins Karen and Paul. I’m sure the Kress Twins Sr are raising a ruckus up there!
Paul De
March 30, 2021
March 30, 2021
Don was National President of Delta Tau Delta when I was President of my Delt house at Kettering University.  I have never forgot his visit, and his dedication to Delt excellence.  My best to his family, friends and Brothers at Delta Tau Delta..............Paul DeMand
Duane Wimer
March 30, 2021
March 30, 2021
Your zest for each day will be missed - but not forgotten good brother.
Robert Auwerda
March 29, 2021
March 29, 2021
Don was such a great Guy ! Always a gentleman . I will surely miss him !
Tom Cannon
March 26, 2021
March 26, 2021
Don was Delta Tau Delta. I am a Lafayette College grad, Class of ‘79. I have known Don since 1975 and he was the best champion of Delt ideals and a friend of all brothers. I was fortunate to ride in the same cart with Don 5 years ago at a Delt golf tournament and that experience was memorable. So many stories that Don told with great recall and passion. He will be missed and always remembered.

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Recent Tributes
Shari Grant
April 8, 2021
April 8, 2021
Don was my first boss straight out of college. I joined Lynch Jones & Ryan and he taught me the Sales ropes. Selling came very naturally to him. He loved being around people and sharing stories. He became friends with many of his clients and was someone who always brought positive energy into a room. Don was a compassionate, kind, generous man. He was always running late, but still always happy to help someone in need...even if it made him more late. We hadn't spoken in about 20 years, and he recently crossed my mind. I thought about trying to track him down and thank him for taking me under his wing. I wish I was able to deliver that thank you. Don, I hope you are looking down, knowing that I did appreciate you. Love, Shari
Victoria Kress
March 30, 2021
March 30, 2021
Uncle Dad/Don -Been hard to post as I think through what an extraordinary impact he had in my life...He was vibrant and hilarious and generous and so full of life. When I lost my dad at 18, he took over the job, guiding me in career choices, listening to me cry over one broken heart after another, welcoming 2 out of wedlock babies as if they were his own grandkids, accepting my amends for being a little $h7t for a big part of my life, providing a vacation in Tennessee for a struggling single mom with 2 challenging tweens and calling me every year on my dads birthday to tell me how proud he would be of me. This year I called him and didn’t realize how sick he actually was(we talked days before and he was “going home tomorrow”)I love you so much Uncle Don, Rest In Peace. My condolences to his children,my cousins Don and Cathy and my cousins Karen and Paul. I’m sure the Kress Twins Sr are raising a ruckus up there!
Paul De
March 30, 2021
March 30, 2021
Don was National President of Delta Tau Delta when I was President of my Delt house at Kettering University.  I have never forgot his visit, and his dedication to Delt excellence.  My best to his family, friends and Brothers at Delta Tau Delta..............Paul DeMand
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His Life

Family

March 21, 2021
by Craig Scholl
Don was predeceased by his wife, Daphne two years ago, along with his parents and his older brother, Jack and his twin, Ray.

He is survived by a son, Donald Brian, a daughter, Catherine Mary, a granddaughter, Elizabeth, his beloved nieces, nephews, grandnieces, grandnephews, and countless extended family members and friends from all over the world.

Early years

March 21, 2021
by Craig Scholl
Don was born in Newark, NJ, on May 8, 1935, to John and Rose Kress. He had an older brother, Jack and his twin, Ray. The three boys enjoyed sports, fishing, and the Kent School where Jack graduated in 1952 and Don and Ray graduated in 1954.

While at Kent Don was on the varsity football and hockey teams, rowed with the crew team, and sang with the Glee Club, the Chapel Choir and Decet. The yearbook reported that "His interest in the school and his hard work in all his endeavors captured for him the important job as Kitchen Head." He later told friends that he stayed out of trouble because he could always claim it was Ray that had been seen. But it must have been more than that for at Commencement Don and Ray won the Columbia Cup, an award for the senior boy "who has shown the most comprehensive grasp of his life and work at Kent." After Kent, Don was involved with fundraising for Kent's chapel renovation and a Campaign Team Member. He was a member of the K-E-Y Society, the Bell Tower Society and a Reunion Committee Member. 

Don graduated from Lafayette College in Easton, PA in 1958 and received an MBA in 1960 from New York University. He was proud to be a member of the U.S. Army.

Church communities

March 21, 2021
by Craig Scholl
Don married Daphne Woods in April 1999 and as active members of the church their wedding was held during the 10am Sunday principal service, a first for this church. Don, like Daphne, was very involved in the church - an important part of their life for many years. He became a prime mover in St. Mark’s’ financial affairs, co-chairing the fundraising effort of its 150th Anniversary celebration in 2000 and the subsequent construction of a new Heritage Hall. For all his years there he was an enthusiastic chorister. Don loved to sing and was up in the stalls every Sunday; even after moving to Tennessee, if he was in town he would don his robes and join the choir for Sunday service.

He always found a church where he belonged. After leaving New Jersey Don and Daphne joined St. Elizabeth’s Episcopal Church in Farragut, Tennessee and then St. Mark’s in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. At each of the churches, he sang in the choir. He dabbled in singing, theater and performances at the churches and in the community including the Tellico Community Players in Tennessee.
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Recent stories

A Typical Business Trip

April 8, 2021
by Shari Grant
As Don's Administrative assistant in the early '90s, I would handle things like correspondence, organizing marketing materials, processing expense reports, etc.,   Don was on a business trip to the West Coast when one day he called into the office midday for an update.  He had pulled off the highway to use a payphone to check in (no cell phones back then!)  The phone conversation was unremarkable, but after Don arrived home, I was processing his expense report, and notices that some of the receipts looked a little mangled.  I asked what happened?  He said that when he pulled of the highway to call the office, he rested his briefcase on top of his car.  As he took off and gained speed, he said he heard and felt a thud, gazed in his rearview mirror and thought he had hit a flock of seagulls because he saw what he thought was an enormous amount of white feathers scattering behind the moving car.  It was then that he realized his briefcase had opened, and all of his papers/expense receipts were now covering the highway.  The way he told the story was hilarious.  He was grateful that someone walking along the highway offered to help him gather his papers...which by the time they made it to my desk were covered in tire marks ;-)  
Don was the best storyteller and had a true joy for life. xo Shari

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