Obituary of David W Donker

David Walter Donker passed away peacefully at the age of 84 from pancreatic cancer on January 9, 2016. A resident of Clifton, NJ and Sanibel, FL, Dave was born in Grand Rapids, MI to Arie and Eleanor (Anderson) Donker on December 30, 1931. As the younger sibling to Betty and Fred (who predeceased him), and uncle to many nieces and nephews, Dave graduated from Montclair High School (1950) and Wheaton College, Wheaton, IL (1954) with a B.A. in Business and Economics where he met his lovely bride, Marilyn Comfield. He served two years with the U.S. Army in Germany. Afterwards, Dave went into business with his father selling and manufacturing industrial filters. They aptly named it Industrial Filters Company, and his son, Steve, currently runs the business. Together, Dave and Marilyn raised three children: Lauren (children Caroline and Hope), Steven (wife Jackie, children David and Danielle) and Ellen (husband Rob, children Madeline, Timothy, Christian, and Leah). Dave had many interests and loved to share them with his family. He was an active golfer, pursued many artistic projects and volunteered his time with many groups including the Wayne Lions, Habitat for Humanity, various feeding ministries, and his church, Grace Presbyterian in Montclair. Over the years, Dave served as Sunday School teacher and youth leader. He spent much of his retirement in Sanibel, Florida where he played golf, took up amateur painting, wrote newsletters for his golf group, rode his bike and hosted his family and friends in a place that he considered paradise. Dave will be remembered as a man of character, and for his love of fun, Andy Griffith reruns, sense of whimsy and humor, and humble generosity.