Moody-Connolly Funeral Home and Crematory

The Memorial Candle Program has been designed to help offset the costs associated with the hosting this Tribute Website in perpetuity. Through the lighting of a memorial candle, your thoughtful gesture will be recorded in the Book of Memories and the proceeds will go directly towards helping ensure that the family and friends of Donald Ehr can continue to memorialize, re-visit, interact with each other and enhance this tribute for future generations.

Thank you.

Cancel
Select Candle
Donald Ehr Donald Ehr Donald Ehr Donald Ehr Donald Ehr Donald Ehr
In Memory of
Donald Gerald
Ehr
1930 - 2016
Click above to light a memorial candle.

The lighting of a Memorial Candle not only provides a gesture of sympathy and support to the immediate family during their time of need but also provides the gift of extending the Book of Memories for future generations.

Obituary for Donald Gerald Ehr

Donald Gerald  Ehr
Donald G. Ehr
July 5, 1930 - January 30, 2016
Donald Gerald Ehr, 85, died at his home in Brevard Saturday, January 30, after a lengthy illness.
Don was a valued and active member of the Brevard community, particularly in the parish of Sacred Heart Catholic Church. He and his wife, Ginny, founded the Caring Shepherds of that parish and, as Eucharistic Ministers, took communion to those unable to attend church services. Don also served as Chairman of the parish Finance committee and was a member of both the Pastoral Care committee and the Knights of Columbus. In addition to his parish volunteer activities, he tutored children through the Rise & Shine after-school program and prepared and served meals to people in need through Bread of Life. This commitment to his parish and his community was a common thread in his life.
Don was born in Muskegon, MI, on July 5, 1930, the eldest son of Gerald William and Eleanor Katherine (Adamczyk) Ehr. Don grew up in Muskegon and Muskegon Heights until his graduation from St. Mary's High School in 1948. He attended Aquinas College in Grand Rapids, MI, for a year and earned his Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering in 1952 from Marquette University in Milwaukee, WI.
After a brief stint working in the nuclear weapons program at Sandia National Laboratories in Albuquerque, NM – during which he witnessed a bomb test in the desert – Don began graduate studies at the Chrysler Institute of Engineering in Highland Park, MI, in 1953. There he met Marge Eagan, a pretty Detroit native who worked in the Institute’s office, and they married in October 1954. Don earned his Master’s degree in Automotive Engineering from the Institute in 1955.
Don's career with Chrysler paused from 1955-58 while he served on active duty in the U.S. Navy Civil Engineer Corps, including assignments in Alameda, CA, and Pocatello, ID. He remained in the Naval Reserve until he was honorably discharged in 1968 with the rank of Lieutenant.
Don returned to Chrysler in late 1958, and spent the remainder of his distinguished professional career in increasingly influential roles at Chrysler headquarters in Highland Park, Michigan. He retired as Chief of Engineering Production Specifications and Releasing in late 1989.
Don and Marge raised their ever-growing family in the Detroit area, eventually settling in the home they built in Troy, MI, in 1969. Don’s Catholic faith was always important to him, and he and Marge prioritized their children's education, sending all nine to Catholic schools in the Detroit area through high school. Don was an active member of the church and school communities, and served as school board president at his children’s grade school, Guardian Angels in Clawson, and high school, Bishop Foley in Madison Heights. He was also a key volunteer and organizer of fundraising and other support activities both for Guardian Angels and as a member of the Bishop Foley Dad’s Club. He was an avid and active supporter of his children and their activities and could often be heard cheering for his kids (and yelling at the officials) during their athletic events. His wife, Marge, passed away in 1990.
Don enjoyed bowling, and participated in the parish Friday night league for many years. After retirement, he started golfing regularly. But his first love was fishing, a pastime he had shared with his father. Don even made several trips to a fishing lodge in Canada accessible only by small plane, which he enjoyed sharing with his sons, sons-in-law, and grandsons.
Don met Virginia Fickel in 1989, when her son David married his daughter Carolyn, and both sets of parents became great friends. By 1995, Don and Ginny were both widowed, and decided to take the rest of their life journeys together. They married in Carolyn and Dave's home parish in Swanton, Ohio, in September 1995, and enjoyed more than two decades of love and happiness together – first in North Myrtle Beach, SC, and then in Brevard, where they moved in 2005.
Don was an enthusiastic traveler, whether driving – and camping – across the United States (a trip he made many times), jetting around the world on Chrysler business trips, cruising to the Bahamas, floating down a European river, or any of the other many ways he explored the world. He particularly enjoyed Elderhostel programs, and participated in nearly 40 programs over more than two decades, most of those with Ginny. In 2007, he and Ginny visited Alaska, his 50th state. He passed his love of travel to his children and grandchildren, all of whom have traveled widely themselves, and who among them have lived all over the United States and in places as varied as Australia, China, South America, and Europe.
Donald Ehr is survived by his wife, Virginia, of Brevard, and his nine children (and spouses): Sue Millon (Adrian), Etowah, NC; Liz Ehr, Washington, PA; Carolyn Fickel, Swanton, OH; Diane Leier (Dan), Shelby Twp., MI; Jim Ehr (Susan), Cheshire, CT; Tom Ehr (Juliana), London, UK; Michael Ehr, Redford, MI; Catherine Ehr (Jose Quinteiro), San Francisco, CA; and Meg Ehr, Washington, DC. Also honoring his memory are twenty grandchildren, four grandchildren-in-law, and one great-grandson, as well as his brother Richard Ehr (Luanne), Milwaukee, WI; sister Carolyn Ehr, Las Cruces, NM; and sister-in-law Mary Ehr, San Jose, CA.
He is also survived by Ginny's children Bill Fickel (Kim), Carlisle, PA; Linda Niesen, Mechanicsburg, PA; six more grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren.
Don's first wife Margaret Eagan Ehr, youngest brother Robert Ehr, and son-in-law David Fickel preceded him in death.
Services will be held at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Brevard on Tuesday, February 9 at 10 am. A reception at the church will follow as well as a private interment.
Memorials may be directed to Sharing House and Bread of Life, both in Brevard, or Four Seasons Compassion for Life in Flat Rock.

Online condolences may be left at www.moodyconnollyfuneralhome.com.
Moody-Connolly Funeral Home is caring for the family.

To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Donald Gerald Ehr, please visit our Heartfelt Sympathies Store.

Order Flowers
Recently Shared Condolences
Recently Shared Stories
Recently Shared Photos
Share by: