Donald L. Means

Donald L. Means passed away peacefully in his home on August 18, 2015. He was born October 7, 1914 in Oklahoma City to Mabel Clair Belvin Means and Shelby Lang Means. Don lived in Oklahoma City with his parents and younger brother, Wayne Louis Means, until the early 1920’s when the family moved to Portsmouth, Ohio to be closer to his mother’s family. During his senior year in high school Don met Dorothy Louise Queen. They dated for several years and married July 3, 1937. Dottie passed away on July 14, 2002 shortly after they celebrated their 65th wedding anniversary. Don attended Portsmouth public schools where one of his classmates was Leonard Sly, better known as Roy Rogers. College was not an option during the depression so he decided to become an accountant. He furthered his education with correspondence courses and attended Toledo University in later years. Don worked for Security Central National Bank in Portsmouth from 1932 to 1942. He then moved his family to Toledo to become an IRS Tax Auditor but found little personal satisfaction during that venture. He held this position until April 3, 1945. The next day, Don became an employee of The Toledo Blade Company (The Blade) in the accounting department, which he found to be the dream job he had always hoped for. During his years of employment he held the positions of Head Cashier, Head of Payroll and retired as Auditor. He thoroughly enjoyed his employment at The Blade working there for 36 years, not retiring until he was 67. Don was a charter member of the Blade-Times Federal Credit Union (Focus Federal Credit Union) which was established in the late 1940’s. He was on the Board of Directors and became its Treasurer/Manager. While working at The Blade, Don participated in the employee’s mixed bowling league and golf league. He continued to play golf and tennis into his early 90’s. In his 80’s he purchased a computer to “keep his books” and updated his accounts until the week before his death. Don was a member of Pilgrim Church in Toledo for 60 years. He was a member of the Barton Smith Lodge #6013 of F&AM, and in 2002 received The Grand Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons’ of Ohio Fifty Year Award. Don is survived by his children, Kay (Robert) Your of Logan, OH; Joy Nachtrab of Evanston, IL; Donald S. (Vicki) Means of Toledo; Grandchildren Jennifer (John) Toth of Avon Lake, OH; Tamara (Rajesh) Nanda of Centerville, OH; Laura Nachtrab of Tucson, AZ and Melissa Means of Toledo; Great-grandchildren Amira, Kiran and Rohan Nanda; JJ and Jeffrey Toth, and Kaiden Pahl. Don is also survived by his special friend Virginia Nichols, whose companionship enriched his life in his later years. She has been a blessing to Don and is cherished and loved by his family. Don was fortunate to have the devoted in-home care provided by Garnet Cowell for the past two years. The family also appreciates the excellent care and services of Right at Home and Heartland Hospice who assisted Don up to the end of his long and full life. Visitation will be held from 4-9 p.m., Thursday, August 20, 2015 in the Walker Funeral Home, 5155 Sylvania Ave. (west of Corey Rd.) where funeral services will begin at 10:30 a.m., Friday, August 21, 2015. Entombment will follow at Toledo Memorial Park. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Heartland Hospice, The Sight Center of Northwest Ohio, Pilgrim Church or the charity of your choice.