Donald Robert Leslie Strauss

DONALD ROBERT LESLIE STRAUSS
June 28, 1941 – November 19, 2012
Donald Strauss of Laguna Hills passed away in Newport Beach, CA Nov. 19, 2012. He was born to Marthinus W. Strauss and Jan Olivier Strauss in Pietermaritzburg, South Africa. At age 9 he became an American citizen when his mother married an American diplomat and they lived in various countries around the world until settling in New York and Virginia when he was a teenager.
He attended high school in Fairfax, VA and shortly after joined the Army and was a member of the 82nd Airborne division, stationed at Ft. Bragg, North Carolina. He played football and various sports for the Army. He married and had two children.
Eventually divorcing, he moved to California in the late 1960s and had a successful career in sales, marketing and management in the waterworks industry, spending several months in Saudi Arabia. He enjoyed telling people “I sell fire hydrants”, which was just one of the many products for which he was responsible.
He married Carol Lipp in 1972 and they lived in Corona del Mar and Newport Beach. He later moved to Laguna Hills. He continued playing multiple sports well into adulthood, including football, basketball, hang gliding, scuba diving, racquet ball and rugby, being a member of several rugby clubs in Orange and Los Angeles counties.
In the fall of 2011 he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and fought a courageous battle for 14 months. He is survived by Carol Strauss, son Scott of Alabama, daughter Dana of Mississippi, two grandchildren, numerous relatives in South Africa and many friends. His parents preceded him in death. He generously donated his body to the Willed Body Program of UC Irvine.
His quick wit, sense of humor and kind heart will be missed by many. A celebration of life will be held this spring. Memorials in his name can be made to Big Brothers of Orange County (bigbro.oc.org), the Wichita Children’s Home, 810 N. Holyoke, Wichita, Kansas 67208, or a charity of one’s choosing.