We regret to advise of the death of Captain Donald Gordon Webster, CD (Ret’d) on Tuesday, 4 June 2019 at the Peterborough Regional Health Centre in Peterborough, ON in his 79th year.
Don was born in Peterborough and raised in Lakefield. He attended the Lakefield Public and High Schools before he joined the Canadian Army in July 1956 at age 16 as a Sapper Apprentice. Don was a member of the 5th Intake Sapper Apprentice Program and undertook training in both military and high school academics for two years at the Royal Canadian School of Military Engineering in Chilliwack, BC. Upon graduating as a Field Engineer, Don was posted to 1 Field Squadron in Petawawa, ON . He served with them until 1962 and served with the United Nations Emergency Force (UNEF) in Egypt during this tour.
Don was transferred to the Army Survey Establishment (now Mapping and Charting Establishment) in Ottawa in 1962 to start a new phase of his career as a Mapper. From 1962 to 1974 he served with ASE in the ranks of Sapper to Sergeant. He attended the Advanced Photogrammetry Course at the University of New Brunswick (1969 -70). He then accepted a University Training Plan Men opportunity and graduated from Carleton University with a B.Sc in Math in 1974. Commissioned as Lieutenant, he remained with MCE and was promoted Captain in 1975. Among his assignments at MCE was Scheduling Officer in the Program Management Office, Officer in Charge of Field Print and OIC Photolithography in the Reproduction Division. Don retired from the Canadian Forces in 1981 but remained with MCE as a Federal Public Servant as a survey engineer. He retired from this work in 1998 and, two years later, moved back to the Peterborough area. In retirement, Don spent much of his time documenting War Veterans from Lakefield and the surrounding area. Don was a member of the Lakefield Branch of the Royal Canadian Legion.
A funeral service will be held at The Hendren Funeral Homes, Lakefield Chapel, 66 Queen Street, Lakefield on Monday, 10 June 2019 at 2:00 PM. Visitation one hour prior to the service. A reception will follow in the Heritage Room of the funeral home. Interment at the Hillside Cemetery in Lakefield. As expressions of sympathy, memorial donations may be made to the Lakefield Historical Society or to a charity most meaningful to the donor. Friends may send online condolences to the Funeral Home or make donations by contacting the funeral home at www.hendrenfuneralhome.com.
