Donald Arlen Mathews

Donald Arlen Mathews was born on May 26, 1945 and passed away on February 9, 2021 in Menifee, CA after battling a severe bacterial infection of an unknown cause. Donald was born in St. Peter, Minnesota to Ted and Violet Mathews and grew up in the small rural town of Cleveland, MN.

He graduated from Cleveland High School in 1963 and soon after he decided to take a trip to Southern California with a classmate where he would meet his first wife, Aleta. Although they chose to marry in Minnesota, they eventually moved back to settle in Orange County, CA and would later go on to have two children.

Donald owned a couple of small businesses, but he was always a free spirit at heart. His love for nature and the outdoors was something that Don enjoyed whenever possible and he would often take his family hiking, camping and on various summertime road trips throughout the US.

Donald is survived by his children, Joyce (Mike) Nicosia and Scott Mathews along with his five grandchildren, Brooke, Liam, Ava, Hudson, Bella and his brother, Richard Mathews. He is preceded in death by his parents, his sister, Janet Gjerde and brother, Kenneth Mathews.

Memorial services will be held at Church of Christ in Cleveland, Minnesota on Friday, June 18th at 12:00pm with a burial to follow at nearby Savidge Lake Cemetery.