BOONE, Iowa—Donald Lawrence Shaw, 96, devoted husband, father, grandfather, and brother passed away peacefully in his sleep on March 14, 2022 while visiting his oldest daughter in Hot Springs Village, Arkansas. Don was a proud American and World War II veteran who loved God, his family, the great outdoors, and the Iowa Hawkeyes. He was a man of the world with many interests and passions who counted friends as his greatest wealth.
Don was a fourth generation Iowan born July 1, 1925 in Boone, Iowa, the eldest of two sons of Elsie (Oesch) and Lawrence Shaw. Siblings include a younger brother, Rev. James Edwin Shaw, and an older half-sister, Eleanor (Shaw) Younggren. Don’s father and grandfather were both conductors on the Chicago and Northwestern Railroad. The family history in America began when his great-great grandfather, John Shaw, immigrated from Scotland to Wisconsin. John Shaw II then relocated to Minnesota, Illinois, and Boone, Iowa. Don attended Trinity Lutheran School and Boone High where he enjoyed ice hockey, track, clarinet and met his future wife, Virginia Sharon Sandelius Herron. They married in 1946 and were blessed with three daughters, Nancy Lynne,
Deborah Lee, and Laura Christine.
Following high school graduation in 1943, Don enlisted with the U.S. Army Air Corps in the Aviation Cadet Training Program. He attended Iowa State University prior to being called up as a 2nd Lt. in September after turning eighteen. Don’s cadet training program began at Camp Dodge Induction Center in Des Moines, followed by basic training at Jefferson Barracks in St. Louis where he was selected for Navigation and pre-flight school in San Antonio, TX. Prior to pre-flight, other training assignments included Dodge City, KS, Millikan University in Decatur, IL and Marana Army Air Base, Tucson, AZ. At the San Antonio Aviation Cadet Center (now Lackland AFB), Don finished number one in his pre-flight class and was transferred to the B-29 Transition Base. He was then sent to Aloe Army Air Base in Victoria, TX to await possible deployment to the Far East. The war ended in 1945, and Don was formally discharged in Sioux City, Iowa where he hitch-hiked back home to Boone.
A proud Hawkeye, Don entered the University of Iowa in 1946 on the G.I. Bill pledging Delta Upsilon fraternity. After graduating in 1950 in Chemical Engineering, Don, Sharon, and Nanci moved to Tulsa, OK where he began a distinguished forty-year career in the oil industry as a petroleum chemist in the laboratories of Mid-Continent Oil & Refining Company and Carter Oil (later Humble Oil). Daughters Debbie and Laurie were born in Tulsa, and in 1962 the family relocated to Effingham, IL. Don worked in exploration and development of oil fields for Enjay Chemical at Louden Field, St. Elmo. Transferring to Texas in 1967, Don worked in sales and marketing of specialty chemicals and new business development with Exxon Chemical in Houston, Baton Rouge and Midland. His vast overseas business ventures included Norway, Sweden, the Netherlands, Belgium, England, Russia, and the Cook Inlet of Alaska. During the course of his career, as Don recently shared, he interfaced with five areas of the oil industry: oil and gas exploration and production, oil refining, petrochemical, new business development, and R&D. Following his retirement in Houston in 1986, Don volunteered for the nonprofit organization IESC (International Executive Service Corps), traveling to assist businesses in the developing countries of Venezuela and Romania. In 1998, Sharon and Don moved back home to Boone where they enjoyed old friends, familiar places, and many summers in Pagosa Springs, Colorado with their children and grandchildren.
An avid fisherman and canoeist, Don followed his passion for the great outdoors from the Iowa, Racoon, and Des Moines Rivers to the Quetico Wilderness of Ontario, Canada and the Arkansas Buffalo National River. His most prized possession was a 1932 Morris canoe he purchased in 1943 from his cousin with a $25 war bond given to him by his grandmother. Embarking on his first journey to the Quetico in 1946 from Ely, MN, Don discovered the magic and beauty of the wilds that cast a spell over him and created a lifetime passion. He read books by Sig Olson, the legendary wilderness defender, and continued trips to the lakes of the Quetico for decades to come, teaching three generations of children and grandchildren the ways of the French voyagers. His many adventures of fun and fellowship on the Buffalo began in 1954 with friends from Tulsa days and culminated with a 50th Buffalo Rendezvous in 2004 and his 80th birthday celebration in 2005. Most recently, Don returned to the Buffalo with his three daughters in May 2021.
Don’s other interests were widespread and diverse, to include jazz and big band music, singing and reading, pheasant hunting, sketching nature scenes, traveling the world, and watching his beloved Hawkeyes. Through the years, Don participated in church choirs, the Elks Lodge, Boone Shrine Club, American Legion, Masonic Lodge, and numerous oil and gas professional organizations.
Don’s legacy includes three daughters- Nanci Shaw of Hot Springs Village, AR; Debbie (Frank) Hertzog of Eagle, ID; and Laurie (Charles) St. Clair of New Braunfels, TX. His seven grandchildren are Kellie Vugrincic, Jennifer Bernstein (Tom McCay), Ryan (Carmon) St. Clair, Kaitlin St. Clair, Corey (Crystal) St. Clair, Christian (Karli) Hertzog, and Jeremy (Shelby) Hertzog. His six great-grandchildren are Adelynn St. Clair; Dominic Vugrincic; Lacey, Jacob, & Charlotte St. Clair; and Sawyer, Ozzie, & Winnie Hertzog. Don also has numerous nieces, nephews, and cousins. He was preceded in death by his parents, Elsie & Lawrence Shaw, his loving wife Sharon of 65 years, granddaughter Kaitlin Shaw St. Clair, son-in-law Frank Hertzog, grandson-in-law Erik Bernstein, and sister Eleanor Younggren.
A ‘Celebration of Life’ will be held at Augustana Lutheran Church on Saturday, July 2nd, at 2:00 pm, officiated by Pastor Dan Solomon. Immediately following the service, Don will be laid to rest with military honors at Linwood Park Cemetery. A reception for family and friends will then take place at Cedar Pointe Golf Course.
Don was a true man among men…a proud patriot and philanthropist, a promoter of faith and family. At his request, memorial contributions may be offered in his memory to Shriners Hospitals for Children, 2900 Rocky Point Dr. Tampa, FL 33607 and to the Wounded Warrior Project, PO Box 758516, Topeka, KS 66675.
“Here’s to you Dad/Gramps/Ole Codger…our Patriarch! You have taught us well…a love of nature and the great outdoors; how to fish, canoe, camp, portage the lakes of the Quetico, hike the trails of Pagosa, and cheer on the Hawkeyes. But most of all, you have taught us to follow our dreams and passions. Nothing ventured, nothing gained! Love you forever and a day!”
Online condolences may be left at www.schroedermemorialchapel.com. Schroeder Reimers Memorial Chapel at Sixth and Marshall Streets is in charge of arrangements.
D.L. Shaw
Donald Shaw, 96, Boone, Iowa
