Date of Birth:
Wednesday, May 25, 1921
Date of Death:
Sunday, September 25, 2011
Age:
90 years old

Donald J. Kaster

Donald Joseph Kaster, 90, of Rochester, Minnesota, passed away on Sunday, Sep. 25, 2011. He was born on May 25, 1921, in Green Bay, Wisconsin, son of the late Joseph and Kathryn (Gehl) Kaster. He married Ruth Elizabeth (Betty) Walls in Wilmington, Delaware on Feb. 8, 1945. Don served his country in the US Army Air Corp during World War II and the Korean conflict. He was a Pearl Harbor Survivor. Near the end of the war, he was a crew member on a special “Round the World” mission to carry 15 well known war correspondents to the fighting fronts. On this mission he saw quite a bit of the world including Casablanca, the Taj Mahal, and the Vatican which included an audience with the Pope.

Don sold insurance for over 40 years and was the eternal optimist. He could strike up a conversation with anyone and you would think they had known each other for years. He enjoyed traveling, camping, fishing and playing cards. He would tell fish stories and he always said he knew where the best fishing spots were located. Don lived in Rochester from 1955-1964 and returned in 1999. He was a Boy Scout leader for many years for St John’s scout troop in Rochester. Don and Betty spent more than 20 years in Gainesville, FL before returning to Rochester.

Don is survived by his wife, Betty Kaster, Rochester, MN; two daughters, Mary Lou Devlin, Rochester; Linda (Kevin) Schultz, Columbus, OH; and a son Jeffrey (Lynn) Kaster, St. Cloud, MN. He is also survived by grandchildren John (Kimberly) Devlin and Jeffrey Devlin, both of Rochester, MN; Jennifer (David) Murphy, Cincinnati, OH; Juliane Schultz, Columbus, OH; Heather (Andrew) Stephens, Cincinnati, OH; Stephen Kaster, Madison, WI; Elizabeth (Peter Stanley) Kaster, Tacoma WA; David Kaster, St. Cloud, MN; great-grandchildren Joseph, Benjamin, Matthew, and Jonathan Devlin, Rochester, MN; Evelyn and Reilly Murphy, Cincinnati, OH; and numerous nieces and nephews.

Don was preceded in death by his parents, a son Stephen Kaster who died in the Viet Nam conflict, a son Gregory Kaster who died at birth, a brother Eugene Kaster, as well as a brother and sister, twins John and Mary Kaster who died as infants.

A celebration of Don’s life with a Memorial Mass will be held at Pax Christi Catholic Church on Friday, Sep. 30, 2011 at 11:00 a.m. Burial will be later at the Fort Snelling Veterans Memorial Cemetery in St. Paul. A visitation will be held one hour prior to the service.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made to the Stephen Joseph Kaster Memorial Fund at St. Johns University, Collegeville, MN.