Donald D. Richardson II |
| Posted 2021-12-28 by mhenderson |
| The Daily Courier, Prescott, Arizona - Originally Published: December 25, 2021 - Updated as of Sunday, December 26, 2021 - Don spent his entire life achieving the impossible and making friends in every corner of the globe. He joined the U.S. Navy in 1960 and spent the next 26 years honorably serving his country. For nine of those years, he was in and out of Vietnam serving as the Team Officer of FCG-1, Team 12 (Beach Jumpers). Don was also an ardent practitioner of the martial arts. As he traveled the globe with the Navy, he would create a club to have others to practice with in each new place he landed. What began as a means of practicing his own art matured into a lasting community of martial artists, many of whom have since gone on to start their own schools. They continue spreading Don’s love of the martial arts. He was inducted into the Martial Arts Hall of Fame in 2000. During his time in the Martial Arts, he obtained the following ranks: 8th Degree Black Belt – Judo; 7th Degree Black Belt Tae Kwon Do; 7th Degree Black Belt – Shotokan; 6th Degree Black Belt Jujitsu, 3rd Degree Black Belt Goshin-Jutsu. After the Navy, Don earned both his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in business at Northern Arizona University. He proceeded to reshape the telecommunication, data and the security infrastructure design and build landscape in Arizona and across countless government facilities in the USA. Don was a tremendous husband, father, teacher, leader, and a true patriot. He is survived by his wife Sheila Richardson, his daughters: Stephanie Pierce, Wendy Plfaumer, Tara Zook, Frances Vance, and Natalie King- Bedell, his sons: Rick Richardson, Charlie Richardson, and Steven King and 15 grandchildren. “Don created a large wake as he cut through this world and now in his absence there is a stillness and calm that is palpable to those that knew and loved him.” — J. A. A Memorial will be held in Prescott, Arizona in the Spring of 2022. Please send inquiries to masterrich2022@gmail.com for more information. Information provided by the family. |
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