Donald S. Stroetzel ’42

Donald died peacefully Aug. 31, 2017, at his home in Southbury, Conn. He was born Dec. 12, 1921, in Canton, N.Y., to Bernice and Benjamin Stroetzel.

He graduated from Princeton in 1942. During World War II, he joined the Navy and, as a lieutenant, at age 22 he took command of a wooden sub chaser, which was hit in a kamikaze attack during the battle of Leyte Island in the Philippines. He received a vice admiral’s commendation medal for excellent work in getting the ship to port and his handling of the event.

He married Dorothy Gow March 23, 1946. She died in 1981. In 1957 Don joined Mobil Corp. in New York, working on the international side, where he served as government and public relations manager. In 1982 he became manager of communications programs for Mobil, which developed all the published material coming out of the company. Before moving to Redding in 1973, he and Dorothy lived in Westport, Conn., where they raised their children, Susan and Michael.

In 1984 he married Diana Haas. After retiring from Mobil, he and Diana traveled extensively on every continent. He wrote stories that appeared in numerous publications nationally and internationally, including one on climbing Mount Kilimanjaro at age 65.

Donald was predeceased by his daughter, Susan Pace. He is survived by his loving wife, Diana; his son, Michael; daughter-in-law Debbie; grandsons Joel, Tyler, and Larry Pace; and granddaughters Amanda and Stephanie Pace.