Donald Watson, Sr.

Mr. Donald Eugene "Don" Watson, Sr died peacefully at Gordon Oaks Health and Rehab on August 22, 2017 in Mobile, Alabama. He was 82 years old.
Mr. Watson is survived by his wife, Carol Langdon Watson; his son, Donald Eugene "Gene" Watson, Jr (Shelly) of Greenville, South Carolina; his step-children, Vicki Sheffield Welch (Timmy), Roxanne Sheffield Lilly (Hartzel), and Lynette Sheffield Kinard (Danny), all of Mobile, Coleman Lamar "Buck" Sheffield, and Chad LaChance, both of Lisbon Falls, Maine; his brothers, Oliver Bertis "Billy" Watson, Jerry Wayne Watson, and Maurice Randall Watson, all of Woodville, Florida; his grandchildren, Tait E. Watson, Catherine W. Bobo, Raina W. Livingston, Timothy J. Welch, Ryan L. Schumann, Victoria Schumann, Nicholas E. Watson, and Matthew A. Watson; and his great grandchildren, Michael Flores, Chase Flores, Conner Livingston, and Lily Welch.
Mr. Watson is preceded in death by his parents, Elgin Bertis Watson and Ina Rosemond Chester Watson of Woodville, Florida; his sister, Mary Lillian Wright of Tallahassee, Florida; his brothers, Thomas Cornelius "Buddy" Watson and Edward Wilk Watson of Woodville; and his former wife, Patsy Rouse Watson Giordano of Pearl, Missississippi.
Mr. Watson was born on August 31, 1934 in Woodville, Florida where he lived until he finished high school. He graduated from Leon County High School in 1954 and enlisted in the U.S. Navy later that year. He went to boot camp in San Diego, California and was trained to be a welder. He served on the USS Gregory (DD802), from 1954-1956 in the Pacific Theater. He then served ashore at USNS Tongue Point, Astoria, Oregon from 1956-1958. He received an Honorable Discharge in 1958 and relocated to Fountainbleau, Mississippi and worked as welder at Ingalls Shipbuilding in Pascagoula, Mississippi. He met and married Patsy Anne Rouse in 1958 and moved to Mobile, Alabama in 1959 where he began his career with Scott Paper Company, Inc. In 1961 while working as a Machine Hand, Mr. Watson suffered the loss of his entire left arm in a paper machine accident. After his recovery, he moved to the Plant Superintendent's office where he worked as a clerk until 1969 when he enrolled in an in-house management training program and achieved qualification to serve as a shift supervisor. He supervised the paper making machines in the S.D. Warren Division of the Scott Paper Mobile Mill until 1992 when he was offered early retirement during a company-wide cost-cutting campaign that preceded Scott's acquisition by Kimberly Clark, Inc. In 1995.
In 1967, Mr. Watson and family moved from Tillman's Corner in Mobile County where they had resided since 1960 to Fairhope, Alabama. He and Patsy Rouse Watson separated and divorced in 1986. He remarried to Carol Langdon Sheffield of Mobile, Alabama in 1988. Carol worked at Scott Paper as well and retired in 1994 after 29 years there. She and Don enjoyed the life and large family their marriage created. They resided in Fairhope until 2014 when they relocated to Tillman's Corner to be nearer their children. Mr. Watson became a resident of the Gordon Oaks Healthcare Facility in Mobile in 2015 then moved to the Gordon Oaks Health and Rehab Center in 2016 where he was living until his death.
Mr. Watson was an avid gardener, carpenter, and hunter of deer and turkey. He also enjoyed fishing (both salt and fresh water), professional baseball, and both college and professional football. His favorite sports teams were the Atlanta Braves, Dallas Cowboys, and his beloved University of Alabama Crimson Tide. He was raised in the First Baptist Church of Woodville, Florida. During his first residency in Mobile, he was a member of Cottage Hill Baptist Church and Travis Road Baptist Church. After the
move to Fairhope, he joined the First Baptist Church of Fairhope where he remained until converting to the Church of Christ after he married Carol Langdon Sheffield. He then joined the Eastern Shore Church of Christ.
His funeral will be held at the Mobile Memorial Gardens Funeral Home on Thursday, August 24, 2017 at 2:00 PM. Family visitation is from 12:30-1:00 and public visitation is 1:00-2:00 PM. Burial will follow the funeral in Mobile Memorial Gardens Cemetary. Mr. Bruce Stewart of Port City Church of Christ will deliver the eulogy. In lieu of flowers, please send donations to the E.A. Roberts Alzheimer's Center/Infirmary Foundation, the PAN Foundation, or St. Jude's Children's Hospital. The family would like to thank Gordon Oaks Healthcare and Gordon Oaks Health and Rehab Center for their dedication to caring for Mr. Watson during his tenure there.

Visitation

Mobile Memorial Gardens Funeral Home
6040 Three-Notch Road
Mobile, AL  36619
Thursday, August 24, 2017
1 - 2:00 PM

Service

Funeral Service

Mobile Memorial Gardens Funeral Home
6040 Three-Notch Road
Mobile, AL  36619
Thursday, August 24, 2017
2:00 PM

Cemetery

Mobile Memorial Gardens
6100 Three-Notch Road
Mobile, AL  36619