[ back ]
Former admiral anchors Jaycees' award
(by Barbara Christian - February 04, 2009)
Former admiral anchors Jaycees' award
By BARBARA CHRISTIAN
Retired U.S. Navy Rear Adm. William O'Donnell was named this year's Chagrin Valley Jaycees Distinguished Service Award recipient before a full house Monday night at Raintree Restaurant in Chagrin Falls.
He was so surprised and overwhelmed by the announcement, Mr. O'Donnell told emcee Dwight Milko, that he simply could not speak.
He didn't have to. Mr. Milko's presentation spoke volumes about Mr. O'Donnell's service to his country and community.
After retiring from military service, Mr. O'Donnell worked in the steel business. After that, he went into business as a home inspector and general contractor, then bought North Coast Home Pro. When he retired again in 2005, he sold the business to his son-in-law Daniel Wolfe.
Mr. O'Donnell has become his South Russell neighborhood's "Mr. Fix It," Mr. Milko said, installing a toilet where needed, laying carpeting or picking up a hammer.
His volunteer work has stretched far beyond the Chagrin Valley. He helped Hurricane Katrina victims when he and others from the Geauga County Habitat for Humanity and Chagrin Valley Rotary Club helped build several homes in the Bainbridge barn of Hugh Edwards. They built the walls, trusses and roofs in the spring of 2006 and 2007. Mr. O'Donnell used the skills he learned in the service and coordinated the shipping to Louisiana.
Mr. Milko said the recipients were so appreciative of their new homes that they traveled to Cleveland to meet the people who helped them rebuild their lives.
Mr. O'Donnell now serves as president of the board of the Geauga Habitat for Humanity.
Mr. O'Donnell learned the importance of service from his parents and grandparents and when he attended Vagabond Ranch in Colorado in 1954. There, he dedicated himself to the development of young men seeking to improve their problem-solving skills. Soon after he arrived, he became camp counselor and helped to locate a lost camper.
He attended the University of Connecticut, where he earned a degree in English and a minor in history. It is there that he met his future wife, Kathy. They have three daughters and a son.
Their first child, Kevin, was born while Mr. O'Donnell was home ported in Key West, Fla. At the time, the family thought he was in the North Atlantic patrolling for Soviet submarines. After his ship's papers were declassified, they learned he was chasing a nuclear submarine from the Adores off Spain to the U.S. coastline during the Cuban Missile Crisis.
Mr. Milko said that, wherever the family was stationed, they always managed to gravitate back to the Chagrin Valley.
[ back ]
