Donald James Maguire died at home in Edgartown on April 30. He was 85.

Born in Danvers on Nov. 26, 1921, Don met his wife-to-be Hazel Ruth Mello in elementary school. The love of his life, she preceded him in death in 1995.

Don graduated from Holten High School and served in World War II in the Army Air Corps as an airplane armorer; 334 Fighter Squadron-4111 Fighter Group based in England, attaining the rank of sergeant.

Citations included Air Offensive Europe, Normandy, Northern France, Rhineland, and Ardennes Campaigns. Decorations include Distinguished Unit Badge, European African Middle Eastern Theater Campaign Ribbon and the Good Conduct Medal.

During the Normandy invasion, Don recalled living on the flight line at the squadron base in Debden for a full month constantly rearming the P-51 and P-47 fighters assigned to him, and not returning to barracks and a proper bed until early July.

He received a personal salute from Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower in a chance personal encounter on the base when the European theatre of operations commander-in-chief visited the 4th Fighter Group to congratulate the pilots and air crews for destroying 1,000 German planes. Don was very proud of his military service, appearing in photographs in several books and magazine articles about the 4th Fighter Group, and was a lifetime member of the American Legion.

Upon returning to the United States, Don married Hazel. They moved to Ithaca, N.Y., where he attended Cornell University.

After serving as a farm manager on Loch Lee Farm in Williamsville, N.Y., Don purchased his own dairy farm on Keller Road in Clarence, N.Y. Don and Hazel worked side by side starting with 12 cows and 250 acres to make a home for themselves and for their son and daughter, Charlie and Beverly. Don loved the farming life: his rich baritone voice echoed in the milk house, the barn and in the fields, as he sang joyfully while he worked.

In 1969, he sold the farm and moved to the Vineyard. At first, he worked for a landscaping business whose clients included writers and other celebrities. Soon, however, the lure of the farm embraced him once again and he returned to farm management for Herring Creek Farm in Edgartown. Raising Hereford cattle, sheep, pigs and chickens, Don and Hazel had the time of their lives. Even in his later years, Don returned to the farm to maintain the barns and buildings on his own work schedule.

A keen outdoorsman all his life, Don always harbored a desire to travel to Alaska and see for himself the unspoiled beauty of the far north. He made many trips, viewing every corner of Alaska winter and summer, making many friends and adopting a new lifestyle for himself after the death of his beloved Hazel. His minute interest in Alaska and the Sourdough lifestyle approached legendary status in his lifetime, and memories of his passion for a good wood stove and fine fur pelts will continue to be celebrated warmly by family and friends.

Survivors include his son Charlie and his wife, Mary Jamin-Maguire of Minneapolis; his daughter, Beverly Hughes Brady and her husband Brian of Buffalo, N.Y.; and seven grandchildren, Elsie and James Jamin-Maguire, and Benjamin, Adam, Nicholas, Jacob and Alexander Hughes.

Calling hours are scheduled at the Chapman, Cole and Gleason Funeral Home, Oak Bluffs from 2 to 4 and 7 to 9 p.m. today. A funeral Mass will be celebrated at 10 a.m. tomorrow in Saint Elizabeth's Church on Main street in Edgartown. Burial will follow in the Oak Grove Cemetery on State Road in Vineyard Haven.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the American Diabetes Association Memorial and Honors Program, P.O. Box 1132, Fairfax, VA 22038.