Today I honor and remember with love the life of Don Calamar, a combat photographer and Silver Medalist who survived the Invasion of Normandy also known as D-Day. Don, was my first photography and photojournalist instructor and sometimes father figure. I remember his soft spoken manner. Don taught more by example. He was unrelenting kind. I remember this the most about him.
His later years were devoted to family, photography instruction, alternative energy, and peace activism. Don was a positive influence in my life.
Always the educator, on one occasion after a family meal, Don and his wife Pat, were so excited to share with me how they prepared our dinner. Guiding me to their backyard for cookies and tea, like eager school children, they unveiled the solar cooker they constructed in their garden backyard.
Don was one of the founding members of Santa Barbara Veterans for Peace and Arlington West.
I am so very grateful to have had a person like Don in my life, especially as a guiding force in my photojournalism career. Thank you for reading this tribute; a testimony to how one life can make an enduring difference in the lives of others.
I miss his goodness. 
AnaElisa 
Dear Ana,
This is Diane Calamar Okonek, Don’s daughter in Alaska and just came across this page you did to honor my father. It is very touching. I had no idea! Thank you so much. I will try to pass it on to other family members.
Sincerely,
Diane
LikeLike
Greetings and Happy Holiday Diane. I was looking at family photos from the memorial the other evening. I have them on a CD. Thank you so very much for writing.
LikeLike
How wonderful to get this from Diane! Don was a quiet man when it came to his past service. I started learning more about him after he past. Such a gentle man and big spirit! Thank you!
LikeLike
Yes he was such a gentle soul and a man of few words, who taught me so much by his example. When I was living in Los Angeles, working for the paper, he and Pat would call me from time to time, to say hello, give me their garden updates, and/or their gardening/building follies from the desert.
LikeLike