Donald F. Pennell, former Paccar exec
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Almost every day, Donald F. Pennell, 94, walked around Yarrow Point wearing a yellow rain jacket and using a white cane to lead his way.
Although he gave up other activities when he lost his sight from glaucoma, he continued to walk almost until his death on Nov. 20 from congestive heart failure.
A prominent Paccar executive until his retirement in 1972, Mr. Pennell remained active in several religious and political organizations.
He was born Feb. 26, 1907, in Skowhegan, Maine, and moved to Seattle in the sixth grade. In 1924, he was part of Roosevelt High School's first graduating class, and he graduated from the University of Washington in 1928 with a degree in mechanical engineering.
In 1929, Mr. Pennell followed his soon-to-be wife, Charlotte Stevens Rawson, to New York, where they married, and he worked for the Brooklyn Edison power company.
He returned to the Northwest seven years later to work for Kenworth Motor Truck, a division of Paccar, as a design engineer. In 1938, Mr. Pennell was transferred to the sales division and worked there until enlisting in the Army during World War II.
"He volunteered the day after Pearl Harbor," his daughter Frances Pennell said.
Despite having two children, Mr. Pennell signed up because he didn't think it was fair to send only young men to war, she said.
When he returned to Seattle, he was again employed by Paccar's Kenworth division as a project engineer.
In 1955, Mr. Pennell started the Canadian Kenworth plant, and in 1959, Paccar assigned him to Newark, Calif., where the newly acquired Peterbilt Motor Truck was headquartered.
In 1965, he was transferred back to Seattle and reached the ranks of director and senior vice president of Paccar before retiring. He remained active with the company through an informal group of retirees and was considered a pillar of the organization.
"Everyone looked up to him to tell us what we should be doing," said Jack Jolley, who also belonged to the group of retirees. He said Mr. Pennell's honesty and personality made him easy to get along with.
After retirement, his family said, he became more politically active and started studying history and current affairs by listening to books on tape.
"I think it was the Vietnam War that made him reconsider his beliefs," his daughter Frances said.
"In World War II, there was a specific threat to our country, but as time went on he became more convinced that war was not the way to solve problems."
Recent current events only solidified Mr. Pennell's beliefs. "He thought we should take a different tack and try diplomacy, not killing," his daughter said.
Mr. Pennell supported many groups, including the American Civil Liberties Union and the Washington Coalition Against the Death Penalty.
After the death of his wife in 1980, he married Phyllis Heaton Roberts.
An active sailor, he was a member of the Seattle Yacht Club since 1965 and most recently owned a Catalina 36.
He also was active in the University Unitarian Church in Seattle.
Survivors include Mr. Pennell's daughter Ann Pennell Angle; son and daughter-in-law, Jonathan and Carolyn Pennell; daughter and son-in-law, Frances Pennell and Carl Shutoff; and seven grandchildren.
Memorial services will be held at 2 p.m. Dec. 22 at the University Unitarian Church, 6556 35th Ave. N.E., Seattle.
The family asks that remembrances be made to the United Nations Association, P.O. Box 22434, Seattle, WA 98122-0434; the Western Washington Fellowship of Reconciliation, 225 N. 70th St., Seattle, WA 98103; or the Group Health Hospice Program, c/o Group Health Community Foundation, 1730 Minor Ave., Suite 1500, Seattle, WA 98101.
Tricia Duryee can be reached at 206-464-3283 or tduryee@seattletimes.com.