In Memory

Donald Nichols

DONALD D. NICHOLS Obituary NICHOLS DONALD D. NICHOLS, 87 of Sewickley, PA, formerly of Westlake and Rocky River, OH passed on Tuesday, December 23, 2014. Born November 26, 1927 in Hamilton, IN, son of A. L. and Beulah (Geiger) Nickols. Beloved husband of Dorothy (Hirschman) Nichols. Father of Brian Nichols of South Euclid, OH and Sandra (Matthew) Cooper of Sewickley, PA and grandfather of Matthew and Benjamin, brother of the late Edwin Eugene Nickols. Donald was raised in Angola, IN and received a B.A. from DePauw University and a M.A. from Case Western Reserve University. Prior to college, Donald served in the U. S. Army and was stationed in Japan with the occupation forces after World War II. He had a 27 year career as a teacher of math and physical education in the Rocky River School District. In his 15 years of basketball coaching, he only had 3 losing seasons. He was an avid tennis player, enjoyed bridge and annual trips to Las Vegas during his retirement. He was a humble man of integrity and wisdom. He and his wife cared for their mentally handicapped son until they were in their 60's. His wit and humor were a cornerstone of his personality. He will be greatly missed by his family and friends. A memorial service will be held at the Sewickley Presbyterian Church, 414 Grant St. Sewickley, PA on Monday, January 5, 2015 at 3:00 p.m. Private burial will take place in the spring. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to Rose-Mary Center 19350 Euclid Avenue, Euclid, OH 44117 where Brian Nichols resides in a group home. Published in The Plain Dealer from Dec. 27, 2014 to Jan. 2, 2015-



 
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01/12/15 01:09 PM #1    

Walt Githens (1961)

Comment from Craig Miller

 

Many thanks for sharing the notice with us. Mr. Nichols was my homeroom teacher (7th grade, I think) and although my only  "class" with him was gym, he was a favorite teacher of mine.

I'll never forget sitting in homeroom one day: we were preparing to go outside to see a demonstration with a car that would show when brakes were first applied (a drop of yellow paint would mark the spot) and when the car came to a stop (another drop of paint).

Anyhow, Mr. Nichols was giving some preposterous amount of travelling time between first recognizing the need to stop and the distance it took before the stop was realized. As a know-it-all 13 year old, I advised him that couldn't be right, stating that reaction times had to be much faster than he was suggesting. As I argued, he leaned back on his chair looking at me intently. All of a sudden, a inch-by-half-inch eraser came flying towards me. (I never saw it leave his hand). For some reason, I had a book in my hand. He asked me when I first reacted to the eraser. Sheepishly, I admitted it was about the time the erasure bounded off my book. Silly story but one that has served me well in my half-century plus of driving cars.    CRAIG MILLER


01/12/15 05:35 PM #2    

Greg Harris (1961)

Only the best memories of Mr. Nichols. He was a neighbor (Battersea Blvd.) , friend, customer, and teacher in and out of the classroom. I was his paperboy. First for the Cleveland Press and then the Plain Dealer. I remember trying out for basketball, ninth grade?, and because I was born with two left feet, I did not make the team. He thanked me for trying out and encouraged me to try other sports. I will never forget his kindness.

May God Bless Don Nichols.

Greg Harris (Class of 1961).


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