Danny Afton Olney |
| Posted 2021-10-29 by mhenderson |
| Published by The Miner on Oct. 28, 2021 - Kingman, Arizona - Danny Afton Olney, age 84 years, of Kingman, Arizona, died on Aug. 31, 2021, in French Camp, California. He was born in Miami, Arizona, and grew up in Kingman where he attended schools there and in Sutter Creek and Jackson, California. After graduating from Kingman High School, he joined the Navy as a submariner. Thereafter he resided in Northern California – Contra Costa and Amador counties – working in sales and as a Teamster where he served as a Shop Steward. For 39 years he was the owner of “Danny’s Landscaping” and the owner/operator of “Circle D Trucking,” both in Contra Costa County. During this time he also attended Diablo Valley College in Pleasant Hill, California, where he started coursework in Cultural Anthropology. Danny married JoAnn Noli in 1958 and they had two children, Eric Daniel Olney and Jeanne Marie (Olney) Roberts. They divorced in 1972. In 1984 Danny married Carol Lee Mitchell at the John Muir Estate in Martinez, California. Danny belonged to the UpCountry 88 Chapter of the Lions Club International. He loved U.S. and World history and classic old movies, especially Westerns. He also enjoyed horseback riding, camping, traveling, reading, entertaining and dining out. He traveled overseas during his Navy service and later visited Mazatlan, Guadalajara and Belize, as well as British Columbia, Alaska and parts of the southern United States with his wife and partner Carol Lee. Danny was a true force of nature – a high school track, football and baseball star who made All-Northern Arizona in the 1950s, an extra in the 1954 movie “Drumbeat,” a swimmer who retrieved practice torpedoes in the Pacific ocean while serving on the USS Char, the owner of a short- lived hog farm in Petaluma and two successful businesses in the Bay Area. He was a voracious reader and a sharp dresser who was as comfortable in a saddle as he was in a suit and tie. He thought nothing of loading his horse into a trailer and heading for the beach or the mountains with a western paperback stuffed in his back pocket, and he cut a fine figure whenever he stepped out on the town. Danny’s sense of humor and work ethic were legend as was his willingness to lend a helping hand to those around him. Not bad for a guy who was born at home and who spent the first few hours of his life wrapped in a hand towel tucked into an empty dynamite box on his parent’s front porch. Danny was predeceased by mother, Geneva Louise Scribner Olney; his father Afton Daniel Olney; his brothers, James (Jimmy) Olney and William (Billy) Don Troup; and his son Eric Daniel Olney. He is survived by his wife, Carol Lee Olney; his daughter Jeanne Marie (Olney) Roberts; and his granddaughter Sami Johnson and grandson Kody Johnson. At his request, Danny was cremated and his ashes will be scattered in the Hualapai Mountains. A “Celebration of Life” will follow at a future date. In lieu of flowers, a memorial gift may be sent in Danny’s name to the Sierra Club California, 909 12th St #202, Sacramento, CA 95814, or to the donor’s favorite charity. See Also: Find A Grave |
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