Donald J Mapes lost his fight with leukemia on February 4, 2022 in Yuma, AZ at the age of 83. He was born to Darrell James Mapes and Orpha L Mapes in Tillamook, Oregon where he attended school graduating from Tillamook High School with the class of 1956.
Upon graduation he entered the U.S. Navy in San Diego returning to Tillamook after boot camp. He married Neva Boge on May 11, l957 and they traveled to Weeksville, N C for his first duty station ZP-1. In June of 1957 he was transferred to Key West, FL where he attended USN Sonar School then served as an aviation sonarman in HS-5 and VX-1. After serving three years in the Navy he returned to Oregon to attend Oregon State University in Corvallis, graduating in the June of 1971 with a BS in Engineering and a MBA. While attending OSU he was a member of Phi Kappa Phi and the OSU Flying Club. He had a number of hobbies including tinkering with cars, racing his boat the DJ-1, playing golf and attending OSU Beaver sports. He was a member of the Corvallis Aquathusiasts, the Corvallis Elks and the Oregon Pilots Association.
They moved from Corvallis to Honolulu, HI for employment with Del Monte Corp at the pineapple cannery and later transferred to Mindanao, Philippines as plant superintendent. He left Del Monte to become the president of Northern Radio in Seattle, WA. They moved back to Oregon where he changed occupations and became a commercial fisherman, F/V Snug Harbor for a number of years then worked in construction on the OR and AK fishing boats retiring in 2006. After retirement they traveled in their RV and eventually settled in Yuma, AZ.
He is preceded in death by his parents and sister Karen DeVries.
He is survived by Neva his wife of nearly 65 years, his sister Nancy Haertel of Keizer, his brother Richard of Bend and this cousin “Bro” Rex Neiger and family of Salem.
Arrangements for cremation were made with the Sunset Vista Funeral Home and Cemetery in Yuma. No services are planned per his request.
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