Richard "DICK" Donegan:
CLASS OF 1964
Montebello High SchoolClass of 1964
Montebello, CA
Montebello Junior High SchoolClass of 1960
Montebello, CA
Grandview Elementary SchoolClass of 1956
Monterey park, CA
Richard "DICK"'s Story
After graduating MHS I continued school at East Los Angeles College, mainly to play football, which I did for 2 years. Thereafter, I joined the Air Force, and served as a Security Force member for 4 years, serving in Montana for 2 years 3 months, 9 months in Texas, and 1 year in Vietnam (Tuy Hoa AB 9 mos), and Buon Me Thuot radar site (3 mos), where I was Honorably released as a Staff Sergeant.
Nine months after I joined the Air Force I was fortunate enough to marry the Love of My Life, the former Janice Jacobs (MHS class of '65). We had many great adventures in Montana and Texas, and met many lifelong friends.
I had tired greatly from saluting officers during my 4 years in the AF, with the main difference between them and me being a college degree. When I got out I was highly motivated to obtain my degree and went back to school at Saddleback College in Mission Viejo and then obtained my Bachelor's degree from California State University, Long Beach, in 1972.
From there I obtained employment at the first off ramp I saw on the I5 listing job openings, at the regional office of Allstate Insurance in Santa Ana, California. I worked there as an underwriter, sales agent, sales manager and as a regional underwriting manager in two regions for 30, and then retired as the Regional Manager for the Southern California Region.
I also worked as a State Manager over Texas and New Mexico for the Auto Club of Southern California after leaving Allstate, where I worked for five years. At this time we were nearing the 2008 crash and decided to sell our home and move to Utah, while we still could. Since leaving S. Cal we've lived in Elk Ridge, where there really are Elk (they and other critters, including mountain lions, bears, racoons and other furry animals come down out of the high country every evening, walk on the side of our home and then bed down on the golf course water hole, (which is right below us),. We love it here and plan on staying as long as we are physically able to.
Janice and I are the proud parents of 4 children (2 boys and 2 girls) and 8 grandchildren. We're fortunate in that 3 of our...Expand for more
4 kids live within 30 to 45 minutes of us, along with 7 of our 8 grandchildren, the other living in London with her husband and child. While raising our family in Mission Viejo and then La Verne I was fortunate to have a job that allowed me the flexibility to coach all my childrens youth sports, including soccer, baseball and softball, from age 5 up through American Legion and Club Sports. Since moving to Utah I've had the chance to coach one grandson for three years in baseball. another grandson, aged 5, in soccer and this year (2019) coached my granddaughters 9 and 10 year old team along with my youngest son. What a great thrill. I really enjoy it and look forward to each practice, game and new season.
We visited with our daughter in London when we went to Europe for 40 days in October/November 2016 (Budapest, Hungary through Austria, Germany and the Netherlands, ending in Amsterdam, then to London, then to Rome, then to Ireland and finally ending again in England) and had a wonderful trip. In 2018 we went to Russia for 14 days,(VERY enlightening about the evils of socialism) and then back to England to visit my daughter, her husband and our 3 year old granddaughter.. We're planning a trip to Eastern Europe in 2020, along with visiting places in Ireland, England and Scotland where, through genealogy work, the places where our relatives were born and lived before emigrating to the United States in the 1800's.
Life has been extremely good to both Janice and I. We recently celebrated our 53rd wedding anniversary (September 2019), and have enjoyed almost all that has come our way. FAMILY - our children and grandchildren are what makes it all worthwhile. We hope for many more years with our family - watching them grow, age, mature and for our grandchildren to have children of their own - who knows, maybe I can coach one of their teams someday. Along the entire journey has been the girl I started out with and the one I've grown old with, and the one who has given me joy and put up with me during this entire time. Without her none of it would have mattered. I am truly a blessed and content man.
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