Richard "Dick" Ford McDonald

AIKEN, SC – RICHARD FORD “DICK” McDONALD, 94, husband of Betty Spires McDonald, died Saturday, April 5, 2014 at the Charlie Norwood VA Medical Center, Augusta, GA.      A native of Austin, TX, Mr. McDonald was a son of the late Myrtle and Richard Ford McDonald, Sr.  He was attending the University of Texas, when he enlisted in the Army Air Corps, December 17, 1941, 10 days after the bombing of Pearl Harbor.  He entered pilot’s school before transferring to Bombardier School in Midland, TX.  After school he stayed on as an instructor for 2 years.  He was later assigned to a combat squadron in Clovis, NM and was sent to Italy.               In August 1944 after a successful bombing mission at Lake Constance between Switzerland and Germany, 1st Lieutenant McDonald’s B-24 bomber with its crew of nine was shot down.  He was one of three survivors.  Dick was captured by the Germans and was a Prisoner of War for 9 months at the war camp near Breslau.          Dick moved to Aiken in 1950 and became a builder and developer.  He was a partner in Combs, McDonald & Parks.  An avid Golfer, Dick designed and built the club house at Midland Valley Country Club, where he became a lifetime member.  He won the Devereux Milburn Tournament at Palmetto Golf Club in 1977.          In addition to spending time with his friends at Goshen Plantation Golf Club in Augusta, Dick was a member of the Aiken Coffee Club.          In addition to his wife, Betty, of Augusta, survivors include two daughters, Sharyn Lyn McDonald, Silver City, NM and Lee Quinn (Fred B.) Cavanaugh, Aiken; two step-sons, Alan (Mary) LaGrone, Lincolnton, GA, Larry LaGrone, Augusta; two grandsons, Alex Cavanaugh and Brian Cavanaugh, both of Aiken; a niece, Beverly Knowles, North Augusta.  In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by Lee's mother, Helen Cook McDonald and a sister, Mary Jo Correll.      The family will receive friends from 6 to 8 PM Tuesday at Shellhouse – Rivers Funeral Home on Pine Log Road in Aiken.  Funeral services will be held Wednesday at 2 PM at the funeral home with Pastor Don Soule of Grace Church officiating.  Interment will follow in Aiken Memorial Gardens.  Pallbearers will be Fred Cavanaugh, Alex Cavanaugh, Brian Cavanaugh, Alan LaGrone, Larry LaGrone, Butch Reed, Steve Homoki and Ed Farmer.  Honorary Pallbearers will be the Aiken Coffee Club and Joe Felton          Memorial contributions may be directed to Friends of the Animal Shelter, PO BOX 2207, AIken SC 29802 (fotasaiken.com) or Wounded Warrior Project, P.O. Box 758517, Topeka, Kansas 66675 (woundedwarriorproject.org). SHELLHOUSE – RIVERS FUNERAL HOME, 715 EAST PINE LOG RD., AIKEN, SC <!-- [if gte mso 9]> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 5 To order memorial trees or send flowers to the family in memory of Richard "Dick" Ford McDonald, please visit our flower store.