Don J. Wilcox

Don was born in 1931 to Brady E. Wilcox and Jessie Mae (Routledge) Wilcox and was raised in Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania, a rural area on the outskirts of Pittsburgh. He was very proud of his parents, his father served in the Army during WWI and his mother was a nurse (originally from England).

He attended a one-room schoolhouse in the country followed by Beaver Falls High School where he enjoyed participating in class activities such as illustrations for the yearbook, event planning for the annual dance and also being on the school’s football team. Growing up with simple means during the depression built a strong character trait that served him well throughout his life.

After high school he enlisted in the Navy and proudly served his country, which included extended service in the Navy Reserves during the Korean War. His love and honor for his country was present every day, flying the American Flag in his front yard year round, and he was also a member of the American Legion. And to this day, he always carried a photo in his wallet of the aircraft carrier we was stationed on, taken in 1949 off the coast of Cuba

Shortly after his time in the Navy upon returning back to Pennsylvania, he met his future wife, Elisabeth, during an outing with friends at a local bowling alley. They married in 1951 and celebrated 65 years together, until her death in 2016. They started their family on the East Coast – two children born in Pennsylvania and one child born in Ohio. It was well known that Don no longer wanted to shovel snow during the cold winters and after being inspired by photos in an Arizona Highways Magazine he relocated the family to Tempe, AZ, in 1961 and expanded the family with a fourth child.

In his early years in Tempe he was a salesman in the food and beverage industry. While calling on different customers, he was presented with the opportunity to purchase his own grocery store, Sunrise Market, a small neighborhood store in a Hispanic area of Tempe known as Victory Acres. Don lovingly operated his store for 18 years and embraced the local families and enjoyed a warm sense of community and culture, maintaining longtime friendships well beyond the years of the store. Even though he retired from the grocery business, he was not one to retire from work and he proceeded to work well into his late 70s, enjoying part time work as an armored driver for Loomis as well as part time work as a funeral attendant with Carr-Tenney.

Don was active throughout his years within the church and civic communities. He and his wife were longtime parishioners, more than 50 years, of the Church of Our Lady of Mount Carmel in Tempe. He was a member of the Knights of Columbus and he participated regularly with his wife Elisabeth in their local Rosary group. He and Elisabeth were both involved with the National Alliance on Mental Illness and the Arizona Center for Disability Law – taking on advocacy work to champion a voice for those that may not have a voice of their own (a cause very close to the family). Don was also a Mason as a member of Oriental Lodge No. 20, raised to a Master Mason in December 2001, and he was also a 32nd Degree Scottish Rite Mason.

Don was known for his care and comfort and he was always giving of his time and supporting worthy causes from veterans’ organizations and children’s hospitals to animal rescue groups (even providing a caring sanctuary to five stray cats that adopted his house for the last 10 years).

He was not a man of grand gestures, instead it was even more endearing that he exhibited small acts of kindness and simple expressions of friendship and love whether with a handwritten greeting card, the clippings of a cartoon from the newspaper or even a note with a little personal drawing of a smiley face and a ‘just because’ message. Everyone who knew Don enjoyed his company for his great storytelling, his amazing sense of humor and for his strength of character, optimism and integrity.

Don was truly a loving husband, a devoted father and a loyal friend. He will be tremendously missed here on earth but the family knows he is at peace with the “good man upstairs.” He is predeceased by his parents, his two sisters (Ruth and Jessie), his wife and his eldest son (Michael). He is survived by his son (Mark), his daughters (Debra and Maria) and his older brother (Calvin).

Funeral services arranged at Resthaven/Carr-Tenney Mortuary and Memorial Gardens (4310 E. Southern Avenue, Phoenix, AZ 85042) on Thursday, August 20, 2020: viewing from 3pm-7pm (Rosary will be recited at 4:30pm; Masonic Service at 6:30pm). Catholic Mass will be held on Friday, August 21, 2020 at 9:30am, Church of Our Lady of Mount Carmel (2121 S. Rural Road Tempe, AZ 85282). In lieu of flowers donations can be made in the name of Don Wilcox to the Arizona Humane Society (online: www.azhumane.org; phone: 602-997-7585, ext. 1035; mail: AZ Humane Society, attn: Development Office, 1521 W. Dobbins Road, Phoenix, AZ 85041).