Good Bye To Leonard Donin

Word has been received that retired Portland retailer Leonard Donin has passed away. Donin was the oldest living athlete to have played on a University Of Oregon team, a former basketball and baseball star, he would have been the first Oregon letterman to live to be 100. To us, he was known as the father of my Aunt Carol, who married my Dad's brother Arny. Although I have known Mr. Donin for 40 years, I did not know until recently of his impressive athletic achievements. As a matter of fact, I did not know that he was an athlete at all. He was a very soft spoken, humble man. As soft spoken as he was, he was also very engaging and it was easy to converse with him. Mr. Donin would have been 100 tomorrow and a party had been planned to honor him.

My Cousin Sam Barer Writes About his Grandfather

My Cousin Sam Barer has a blog with mostly car tips, but he changed the subject slightly today to honor his wonderful maternal Grandpa who was honored by the University Of Oregon
This weekend I had the honor of helping my grandfather, Leonard Donin, out to center court at Portland’s Rose Garden arena right before tip-off of the basketball game between University of Oregon and University of Utah. At 96 years old, Grandpa is the oldest living U of O varsity athlete, having lettered in basketball and baseball.
My grandfather was introduced over the public address system as the game’s honorary captain. The entire crowd (which included over thirty family members and friends) came to its feet. As he waved to the adoring crowd, I applauded the man who not only fathered my mother, but also was responsible for the little athletic ability I received.