Don McCrea Jr.

September 24, 1948 - January 7, 2020

Don McCrea, Jr., 71, of Hanover Township, passed away on Tuesday, January 7, 2020. Born September 24, 1948 in Scranton a son of the late Donald and Dorothy Williams McCrea, he was raised in Dallas. A 1966 graduate of Dallas High School and 1968 graduate of Wilkes-Barre Business College, Don continued his education at Luzerne County Community College. An Army veteran of the Vietnam Era, Don served our country for nearly two years in-country. He earned numerous medals, including the Army Commendation Medal, Bronze Star Medal, and Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross with Palm before being honorably discharged with the rank of Specialist 4. Returning to Wilkes-Barre after living in Nazareth for a year, Don began working as a security guard at RCA in Mountain Top. In 1978, he began working with the Child Development Council of Northeastern Pennsylvania, where he was a driver and child care aide at the Heights Day Care Center. Before retiring due to ill health in 2001, he worked for the Parks Department of the City of Wilkes-Barre for six years. Don played baseball in his youth and later played softball for the teams of Grotto Pizza, Suds & Spuds, Jones' Pancakes, and the Riverside Rats. He was an enthusiastic fan of Dodgers baseball, Lakers basketball, Dallas Cowboys, USC and Penn State football, and NASCAR. Don was a longtime member of the Oak Grove Club and attended Saint Mary's Church in Wilkes-Barre. A sister, Dorothy Bonn, preceded him in death. Don will be greatly missed by a nephew and nieces, Jay Bonn of Nazareth, Colleen and her husband Bill Nocera of Old Forge, and Kara and her husband James Aragona of Georgia; great-nieces and -nephews; other family and friends. Don's family is grateful for the loving, compassionate care he received from the staff of AseraCare Hospice. Celebration of Don's Life will be held Friday, January 10, 2020 with visitation beginning at 10 AM followed by a Funeral Service at 12 PM at McLaughlin's, 142 South Washington Street in Wilkes-Barre. Interment with Military Honors will be in Saint Mary's Cemetery in Hanover Township. Memorial donations are preferred and may be made to the Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center. Memories and condolences may be shared with Don's family at www.celebratehislife.com