Donald Eldridge

Donald “Don” Travis Eldridge, 66, of Amarillo, passed away on January 9, 2019. Born August 14, 1952 in Los Alamos, New Mexico, Don grew up in a family that later lived in Clarksville, Tennessee before making Amarillo his home. A 1971 graduate of Tascosa High School, he went on to earn a Bachelor of Business Administration from West Texas State University in 1975.

Don married Joyce Hamann on August 6, 1977. For more than two decades he worked with the Texas Department of Transportation, where colleagues remember him as reliable and hardworking. Outside of work, Don had many passions: he was an avid angler and hunter, a skilled taxidermist, and a musician who played bass guitar with the Texas Tumble Weed Junction Band, sharing his love of country, classic rock and red dirt music with others.

He is survived by his daughter, Amanda Eldridge; his mother, Mary Eldridge; his sister, Marilyn Weichmann (and her husband Mike); and his brothers Allen Eldridge (and wife Janet) and Mark Eldridge, as well as nieces and nephews who cherished him. He was preceded in death by his father, Deward “Dewey” Eldridge.

Family and friends gathered to celebrate Don’s life on January 19, 2019 at LaGrone Blackburn Shaw Coulter Road Chapel in Amarillo. Those who knew him remember a man who cared for his family, loved the outdoors, and enjoyed making music with friends. He will be remembered for his steady presence, many skills, and the small, lasting ways he enriched the lives of those around him.