Donald Dale Freeman, 86, of Prosser, entered into rest on November 22, 2012 at Sun Terrace in Prosser.
He was born on April 26, 1926 in Minneapolis, Kansas to Vance and Grace (Shannon) Freeman. He was one of five sons, all of whom served in the military; Don and Clyde in the U.S. Navy during World War II and Bernard, Gale and Elmore in the U.S. Army during the Korean War.
His family moved from Kansas to White Bluffs and later to Sunnyside where Don attended school. Don joined the U.S. Navy in 1942 and served in the South Pacific as a machinist mate and ran a twenty millimeter gun. He was honorably discharged in 1946. After the war, he returned to the Yakima Valley and worked various jobs until settling into a thirty-seven year career as a nuclear process operator at Hanford.
Don married Phyllis Lee Myers on November 19, 1949 in Kennewick. Their first son, Dale Dean Freeman, passed away at the age of five months. A few years later they were blessed with another son, Gary Wayne Freeman. The couple made their home in Richland for over twenty years; Grandview for twenty-nine years and have resided in Prosser since 2006. For the past twenty-one years, they also enjoyed spending the winter months in Arizona. Don and Phyllis had a wonderful life together and on November 19th just celebrated their 63rd wedding anniversary.
Don was an avid hunter and loved going antiquing, always searching for another great deal and so enjoyed showing everyone what it was and how it worked. He also loved to tinker with his tools and enjoyed fixing things and loved to garden and sharing his bounty of veggies with everyone. He was a person who loved to keep busy and the only time he wasn’t was when he was visiting with friends and family. Don was a proud life-time member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars, Sunnyside post.
Don is survived by his wife of sixty-three years, Phyllis Freeman of Prosser; his son, Gary Freeman and his wife, Karla of Grandview; three granddaughters, Gina (Sean) Bradley of Prosser, Sheila (Dan) Kassinger of Grandview and Erin Freeman and her fiancé, Josh Henn of Kennewick and thirteen great-grandchildren. He is also survived by two brothers, Clyde Freeman of Whidbey Island and Bernard (Crystal) Freeman of Richland; sister-in-law, Bonnie Allen of Prosser; and several nieces and nephews. He was also preceded in death by two brothers, Gale and Elmore Freeman.
Funeral services will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Wednesday, November 28, 2012 at Prosser Funeral Home. Burial and concluding services with Full Military Honors will follow at the Prosser Cemetery. Visitation is scheduled for Tuesday, November 27th at Prosser Funeral Home from 3:00-7:00 p.m.