Donald Joseph Seely, 82, a retired dairy plant manager, died of esophageal cancer July 26 at Springbrook Adventist Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Silver Spring.
He managed the dairy plant at the University of Maryland at College Park for about 20 years until his retirement in the mid-1970s. He then had a part-time job making ice cream for Swensen Ice Cream shops in the Washington area.
Mr. Seely, who lived in College Park, was born in Waverly, N.Y. He graduated from what is now New York State Agricultural and Technical Institute at Alfred University in Alfred, N.Y., and served as an Army first lieutenant in the Pacific during World War II.
After the war, he graduated from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University in Blacksburg, Va., with a degree in dairy manufacturing.
He was a member of University Methodist Church in College Park.
His wife of 47 years, Margueritte Blackwell Seely died in 1996. Survivors include a daughter, Kameron Seely Behrmann of Beltsville, and a grandson.
Published in The Washington Post, (DC) – August 1, 1998
