Donald Lee Naphy was born on January 30, in 1963 in Wiesbaden Germany
while is father was stationed there with the US Air Force. In 1965, he returned
to the US (Laredo Texas). His primary schooling was in Texas (Fort Worth and
Weatherford) and Waynesboro PA where he also went to Junior High. He then
moved with his mother to Virginia and attend High School in Fries Virginia
where was on the tennis and football teams. After graduating, he briefly
attended Virginia Tech before deciding to enter the Coast Guard. He served in a
number of places but especially remembered Yap Island in the Western Caroline
Islands in the Pacific as well as Tacoma WA. Yap was the perfect place for him
to develop and enjoy his love of snorkelling and scuba diving. After leaving the
Coast Guard he moved to Huntsville AL to work at Redstone Arsenal (next to
the NASA base. For the rest of his working career he worked for the
Department of Defence in Hunstville and Montgomery AL in
telecommunications. He was very pleased to be able to retire in his 50s and
lived near his mother (Arlene Naphy) in Cullman AL. In retirement, he enjoyed
working on restoring older cars (pre-1990s) which was his great passion. He
passed away suddenly and unexpectedly on Thursday, December 11, 2025 in
Birmingham. He was preceded in death by his father, Paul Naphy (2022) and is
survived by his mother, Arlene, and brother, Bill. His passing stunned us all
and has left us bereft. He will always be remembered for his joyful laugh and
firm opinions. Both of which were a delight to all who knew him.