Donald C. "Don" Little

Donald Colin “Don” Little aged 83 of Griffin, Georgia peacefully passed away at home on Monday, April 22, 2024.
Don was born on January 16, 1941, in Detroit, Michigan. His parents, Alec Colin Little, Elva Henderson Little, sister, Susan Little all precede him in death.
After emergency back surgery while in his 30’s, Don wrote in his memoir, “The Holy Spirit entered my soul and opened my eyes to a new way of believing in God. It was a total miracle. I had no back pain.” This event propelled him to co-found The Tokyo American Club Assembly of God Church. His love for the Lord encouraged him to teach Sunday School for many years. Currently, he and Penny are members of Sunny Side United Methodist Church.
One of Don’s passions in life was his career, from his first job of working for the “mafia” at Dixiefield Supermarket to being hired by Alcoa post-graduation from Eastern Michigan University. He was proud to negotiate a starting salary of $5,500 with Alcoa and climbed the corporate ladder traveling and living all over the Midwest gathering many friends along the way. In 1981, he bravely moved his family to Tokyo as VP of Alcoa Japan and eventually took over the reins of Fujikura Fiber Optics in South Carolina. When Don retired from Alcoa, he and Penny built their dream home on Lake Keowee, SC and enjoyed 23 years of lake life.
A surprise to some may be Don’s lifelong love of animals from rabbits in his childhood to horses in early marriage. He and Penny bred, showed and sled raced St Bernard’s. Cats, fish, ball pythons, and who knows what else his sons’ brought home, were enjoyed by Don. Later in life he moved on to smaller breeds - shih tzu and the mighty long haired chihuahua.
Don was never at a loss for hobbies to fill his days. Woodworking, boating, 5 o’clock noodling in Lake Keowee, gardening, card playing, snowmobiling, golfing, skiing, hiking, hunting, stock market investing, watching his sons’ and grandchildren’s sports and performances…the list goes on. As a father and grandfather, he was proud to share his knowledge, skills and interests.
But the best of times were shared with Penny. Their mutual love of travel, good food and cocktails, music, the arts, dancing and entertaining their many friends sustained them for over 61 years. Additional survivors include sons and wives, John and Kathy, Andrew and Jennifer, Adam and Amy Little; grandchildren, Colin (Fiancée, Carly Bassett), Maggie, Jack, Griffin, Taylor and Campbell Little; brother, Cal Little; several nieces and nephews.
A visitation will be May 4, 2024, from 11:00am until 12:00pm at Conner-Westbury Funeral Home. Followed by a memorial service at noon in the funeral home’s chapel.
All are welcome to attend a reception to celebrate Don’s life at The Sun City Peachtree Golf Club after the service. 250 Del Webb Blvd. Griffin, GA. 30223

Those desiring in lieu of flowers may donate in Don’s memory to:
Tunnel to Towers Foundation at www.t2t.org St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital at www.stjude.org

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