Don Chandler, Times Assistant Circulation Manager

Don R. Chandler, 56, assistant circulation manager of The Seattle Times and an employee of the company for nearly 40 years, died Saturday of cancer. A funeral will be held at 11 a.m. Wednesday at Bonney-Watson.

Mr. Chandler, who began as a carrier when he was 12 years old, was hired by the company in February 1952 as an assistant district adviser supervising carriers. He was in the Army from 1954 to 1956 and returned to The Times.

As assistant circulation manager, he was in charge of administration and distribution for both The Times and the Seattle Post-Intelligencer under the Joint Operating Agreement.

Mr. Chandler's boss, John McCall, vice president for circulation, called him a "calm, cool, but upbeat voice of experience," noting he played a major role in The Seattle Times' circulation success over the years.

"He was also a good friend and a great listener . . . someone to whom we all turned to in times of stress and change," McCall said.

Mr. Chandler is survived by his wife, Colleen; a daughter, Sherri, and his mother, Lucille Guth, all of the Seattle area, and a stepsister, Lorna Valdez, of Ocean Shores, Grays Harbor County. The family suggests memorials to the American Cancer Society in lieu of

flowers.