He is preceded in death by his mother, Willie Green Donald; his father, Willis “Bill” Donald; his step-mother, Jess Donald; and a son-in-law, Robert Gerald Lightsey.
He is survived by his wife of 60 years, Ouida Hooks Donald; a son, Dr. Mark Donald (Daphne); two daughters, Valerie Lightsey and Jennifer Raybon (John); 9 grandchildren: Jake Donald (Jessica), Tyler Lightsey (Amber), Whitney Donald, Julie Chaffin (Bryant), Kyle Donald, Taylor Lightsey and Caroline Lightsey; 6 great-grandchildren: Grant Lightsey, Avery Donald, Kate Lightsey, Liam Donald, Preston Lightsey, Ruth Chaffin, Chandler Raybon, and Lauren Raybon. William is also survived by his sister, Mary Jane Clark; and two brothers, Charles Donald and Jerry Donald (Jeanette).
Husband, Daddy, Pop, William, Billy Gene – to the outside eye, William lead a pretty simple life. Raised in Louisville, he married his first love and soon after settled in Louisville and raised his family. He retired after a long successful career in Louisville. He was an active member of First Baptist church for almost 50 years and deacon for over 45 years.
To people that knew him, he was much more. He adored his wife and together they were committed to putting Christ first in their marriage. Their love story and partnership were a true testament of what a marriage should be. He took great pride in his children and grandchildren. They were his pride and joy. His passion was to share his Godly wisdom with them and shower them with the love of Christ.
He also loved his church family. He was not only a committed member of First Baptist, he demonstrated true traits of a disciple of Christ to everyone he came in contact with. He loved reading and studying the Scripture and lived it out to his family, friends, coworkers and our community. He was truly righteous, about as close to a saint as anyone could be. The love for his family, friends, church family, coworkers and community came from his love and passion for Jesus Christ.
Matthew 25:21 sums up the life of William Donald. It reads, “His master replied, Well done, good and faithful servant.” His family, friends, church family, and coworkers can attest that William’s Master greeted him in Heaven with these words.
