Donald Packard Meiss, 90

Donald Packard Meiss passed away peacefully on May 13, 2016, one day after his 90th birthday. He was born on May 12, 1926, in Philadelphia, Pa., the last of three brothers in the family of Walter and Isabel Meiss.

They were raised in Westfield, N.J. He served his country in the Marine Corps during World War II and was stationed in China and Japan just after the war. He returned to study geology, under the new “GI Bill,” at Rutgers University, and was a member of the Chi Psi fraternity. He fell in love with the West during a college geology field trip. His first job, as a mining geologist in Butte, Mont., lasted one day as he realized that being underground all day was not his cup of tea. He was quickly hired as a petroleum geologist in Casper, Wyo., in 1952.

He returned to New Jersey to marry his college sweetheart, Margaret “Peggy” Brown — whom he met on a blind date — in January 1953. The newlywed couple moved to Billings, Mont., which became their home, and the birthplace of their three children, Jim, Linda and Diane. Don’s subsequent career involved multiple moves to follow the oil — back east to Pennsylvania, returning to Casper, followed by a brief stint in Houston. Indeed after realizing how much his family missed the west — and disliked the humidity! — he found another job running a petroleum development office in Billings. The children happily finished their school years in this more felicitous environment. A final career move led Don and Peggy to Denver.

Upon retirement, they moved to Coeur d’Alene in 1985, where their daughter Diane had started her own family. One of Don’s loves was camping — his family has many fond memories of Don “putting on the camping hat” and heading out in the car with a tent for a summer trip. Of course this lead to many opportunities for rock collecting with special emphasis on finding the “FRDK” rocks (funny rock, don’t know!). Another love was golf; indeed, a high priority for the move to Coeur d’Alene was to build a house on the Avondale golf course, were Don became, in his retirement, a ranger for many years as well as a regular on the links.

Don’s brothers, Tom and Forest, and his parents predeceased him. He is survived by Peggy, his loving wife of 63 years; his three children, Jim Meiss (Mary Sue) (a professor in Colorado), Linda Staley (John) (church administrator in Wyoming), and Diane Nelson (Jeff) (Registered Nurse in Coeur d’Alene); grandsons Bryan Nelson (Laura), Scott Nelson, both of Boise, Brett Staley and Ian Staley from Cheyenne, Wyo., and Todd Staley from Bellingham, Wash.; and two great-grandchildren and one on the way.

Yates Funeral Home, Coeur d’Alene Chapel, has been entrusted with the care of final arrangements. Please visit Don’s online memorial and sign his guest book at www.yatesfuneralhomes.com.