Don was born to Ralph and Mary Ellen (Butler) Hobbs on 23 July 1935, in Tulare, CA. He graduated from Tulare Union High School in 1953, and obtained his Associate of Arts degree from the College of the Sequoias in Visalia, CA in 1955. He was in the Marine Corps Reserves from 1954 to1960, where he achieved the rank of sergeant. He married Jean Wahl on 10 June 1956.
For 27-1/2 years, Don worked for Deere & Co. as a service representative. During this time, Don and Jean and their two children lived in Phoenix, AZ; Lima, Peru, South America; the San Francisco Bay Area; Gresham, OR; and since 1982, in Yakima, WA.
After early retirement, Don worked at various jobs in the Yakima area. His interests always included mechanics and electronics, including computers. He read about these subjects, and others, throughout his life, devouring periodicals like Popular Mechanics, Popular Science, MotorTrend and many others.
Don was always interested in how things worked, and making things work better. He had a belt buckle that read “Master Mechanic” and that was an apt description. There was nothing mechanical that he couldn’t fix if he put his mind to it. He was an expert at hydraulics, air conditioning and electronics on John Deere tractors and other Deere equipment, and also specialized in teaching this to other Deere employees and associated personnel. He liked to be, in his words, “on the cutting edge of technology”. He always loved the music that Jean played, at home, with a community group, or at church. One of their early bonding experiences was the musical ‘Oklahoma!’. He was a member of Selah United Methodist Church and sang in the choir. Don also loved making homemade whole wheat bread, and frequently gifted a loaf to a lucky friend.
He is survived by his wife of 64 years, Jean; his daughter Barbara (Dave Elwood) of Rio Rancho, NM; his son Larry of Sultan, WA; two grandsons, Kevin (Megan) Hobbs of Spokane, WA and Bryce Hobbs of Duvall, WA; his twin brother William R (Sarah) of Merced, CA, and younger brother Nathan of Molalla, OR, two nieces and two nephews. He is preceded in death by his parents.
He was well loved and will be greatly missed.
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