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Donald Sanborn

February 15, 2023
Portage, MI

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Sanborn, Donald 2/17/1927 - 2/15/2023 Portage Donald Henry Sanborn was born on February 17, 1927 in Pontiac, Michigan and died on February 15, 2023, in Denver, Colorado. He loved and was loved by his wife of 50 years, Sheila, who died in 2008. He loved and is loved by his daughters Elizabeth Hoskins and Sue Sanborn, his sons-in-law Jeff Hoskins and Jerry Fuhriman , his twin brothers Dennis and David Sanborn, and his sisters-in-law Shirley and Earlene Sanborn. He loved and was loved by many friends over the years, most notably in the last year of his life by Pat and Art O'Leary, and Kimberly VandenBosch, all of whom were a tremendous help to him. Dad was a complex and brilliant man, with a wide range of interests, especially music, books and history. He played the harmonica and practiced his keyboard. He kept song books for his favorite tunes which he sang through the day, and perused YouTube for interesting forms of music. He could tell you everything about opera, but also loved music from the 40s and 50s, as well as bluegrass, folk, and classical music. He delighted in watching marching band videos from around the world. Found on his table, after his death was his recent hand-written lyrics for Fisher and Dvorak's 'Goin'Home'. Although Dad's career was with the Upjohn company as Marketing Research Director, his degrees were in English, and his lifelong study was of history, especially the history of World War I, World War II, the Civil War, aviation, and the American west. Dad started reading at the age of two and at his death had over 1000 books which he had read and re- read. He usually read four or five books at once, as well as three daily newspapers and numerous periodicals. Dad felt it was essential to understand history in order to learn from the mistakes of the past. On one hand, he was a pacifist yet he was also proud of his service in the Navy during World War II, and deeply honored others who served. He was broadly philanthropic, with both money and time, serving 28 years as president of the Schoolcraft historical society, helping to restore and give tours of the Nathan Thomas underground Railway house; and he donated over 10,000 hours as a docent for the Air Zoo in Kalamazoo. Dad was enchanted with flight and airplanes, surrounding himself with model airplanes, many of which he built. Dad had a quick, quirky wit and playfulness, that balanced his deep pondering of life. He liked to make up silly words, taught his children that glacial landscapes were created by the 'Great Turtle', and had a fascination with dinosaurs, keeping a collection of colorful Dinos on his kitchen counter. He loved life passionately and would stay up until one or two in the morning because he wanted to make the most of each day. Dad and Mom enjoyed their 25 years on the farm in Schoolcraft where they had ducks, cats, dogs and as many as 29 horses. Dad was kind, humble, generous, gracious and compassionate, always expressing his gratitude even in his final days. He died two days before his 96th birthday. He is greatly loved and greatly missed.