Donald Hallwachs
Donald Richard Hallwachs, 91, of Palmdale, California, passed away February 8, 2022.
A private memorial service will be held April 9 in Lompoc, CA is planned.
Inurnment will be in the Lompoc Cemetery in Lompoc.
Donald was born to Ernest Morgan and Alvina (Moeser) November 18, 1930 in St. Paul. He married Joanne Stachurski October 13, 1955 in Milwaukee, WI.
Working 40 plus years in the aerospace industry, Don starting at McDonnell Aircraft in 1956 in St. Louis, Missouri and worked there for three years. When his new bride became homesick for Wisconsin they returned to Milwaukee where he worked for General Motors hired him to test equipment from IBM. A strong work ethic promoted him to supervisor for the Apollo Ground Support team. Willing to move his family (which had grown to three girls and one boy), General Motors relocated him to Santa Barbara, California working in the defense research laboratory built in Goleta. This relocation was supposed to last one year but stretched into 33 years of groundbreaking work for the U.S. government including: pingers installed in the South Pacific and the first successful delivery that was on time and without delay; printed wiring boards (PWB) production for computers and the Apollo guidance systems, plus pioneering electronic design replacing paper designs, were his standout accomplishments. Retiring in April, 1993, Don and Joanne took advantage of their freedom and traveled throughout the United States taking in school and family reunions, watching baseball and football games at every stadium west of the Mississippi River and participating in bowling tournaments where it was not uncommon for Don to bowl 300 point games. Don and Joanne also volunteered at the La Purisima Mission in Lompoc where they organized and attended the yearly mission days held at the mission. Also, Don worked with other retired General Motor engineers making wooden toys to donate to families in the Santa Barbara area. Don was grateful for all of his colleagues who helped him throughout his long electrical engineering career. He greatly missed Joanne, who preceded him in 2014, after 57 years of marriage. His remaining family of Catherine, Donald Morgan, Judith and Audrey (who passed away in 2019) and their children all hope Don and Joanne are reunited once again to look down to enjoy our adventures and protect us with their love. We love you, Dad, and may you rest in peace.
Don is survived by two daughters, Catherine Hutzel, Palmdale and Judith (Greg) Pryor, Burbank; one son, Donald (Alice) Hallwachs, Grand Terrace; seven grandchildren; one great-great grandchild; one brother, Morgan (Nancy) Hallwachs, Ocala, FL.
He is preceded in death by his parents; wife, one daughter, Audrey Evans and two sisters, Sarah LaVake and Shirley Hallwachs.
Arrangements were by Starbuck-Lind, Lompoc.
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