Donald Eugene Gardner, 79, of Waterloo, died Tuesday, September 22, 2026, of natural causes. He was born on January 13, 1947, in Waterloo. The son of Roland and Dorothy (Nass) Gardner. He graduated from Waterloo West High School in 1965 and then attended and graduated from the University of Northern Iowa in 1969. After college, he joined the US Army and served for two years.

Donald married Joan Manross, together they had two children, Amy and Matthew, they later divorced. Donald’s second marriage was to Sandra Stupp, and they had a son, Loren, and later divorced. Donald’s early working career was a cigarette and baby formula salesman and small business owner. The second half of his career, he went back to school and trained as a drug and alcohol abuse counselor and began employment with the State of Iowa in Dubuque County. His final career change, which became his purpose in life, was as a parole officer for Black Hawk County in the state of Iowa where he retired in 2015.

Donald was a reserved and quiet man. When he chose to speak, he had a great ability for a person to feel the words he was conveying. Donald’s true gift was on display to his children in consistency. “Just work a half hour on something each day and you’ll be amazed at what is accomplished in 2 weeks.” That fed into his love of tradition and love language of gift giving. His hobbies evolved over time. One that was a constant in his life in his free time was cabinet making and woodworking with his youngest son, Loren. He enjoyed golf, traveling and the latest technology craze. The true love of fishing on the Cedar River and the family time that came with it was a great gift that cannot be replaced. He fished when health allowed right up to the end. When he didn’t know what to do, he always stayed focused on providing for his family to ensure their future.

He is survived by his children: Amy (Todd) Burch’ Matthew (Julie) Gardner’ and Loren (Carlene) Gardner all of Waterloo; grandchildren: Haley (Matt) Davidson, Madison (Jared) Konrardy, Sawyer Burch, Bergen (Bryan) Wendt, Colton Burch, Carter Schulte, Karis Burch, Rolyn Gardner, Bennett Gardner, John Gardner, Nora Gardner, Abigail Gardner, and Grayson Gardner; great-grandchildren: Mira Konrardy, Brewer Davidson, and Baby Wendt, and a brother, R. David (Anne) Gardner of Oakland, NJ. He was preceded in death by his parents.

There will be a one-hour visitation at 9:00AM on Saturday, October 3, 2026 at Locke Garden View Chapel, Waterloo. A public memorial service will follow at 10:00AM. Burial following in Garden of Memories Cemetery with military honors. One hour fellowship time will follow. No lunch provided.