Mack Donaldson Secord

Mack Donaldson Secord, 92, died July 3, 2024, in Rock Hill, South Carolina.

Mr. Secord was born September 24, 1931 in Montgomery, Alabama, the only child of the late Gladys Donaldson Secord and Malcolm Munroe Secord. He was known as “Don” to his family, “Daddy Don” to his grandchildren and “Mack” to most other people. He grew up in Birmingham, Alabama and graduated from Phillips High School in 1948. He and his mother spent their summers in her hometown of Pontotoc, Mississippi with his grandparents.  

He received his undergraduate degree in broadcasting from the University of Alabama in 1952. Upon graduation, he was commissioned in the U.S. Air Force and for the next 22 years, served in a variety of pilot, flight instructor, and spokesman positions for the Air Force. Among his many military honors, he received the Legion of Merit and the Distinguished Flying Cross for the mission to rescue missionaries from the Belgian Congo in 1964. He also earned a master’s degree in management systems from the University of Southern California in 1971. He was inducted into the Georgia Aviation Hall of Fame in 2014.  

Don was married to Lorene Abney on March 9, 1957 in Marianna, Florida. They lived in Fort Walton Beach, Florida; Fukuoka, Japan; Fayetteville, North Carolina; and Alexandria, Virginia, where he ended his military career as spokesman for the Air Force at the Pentagon.  

Retiring as a Lieutenant Colonel in 1974, he became Special Services Manager for Georgia Power Co. in Atlanta, and in 1977 he joined the Municipal Electric Authority of Georgia (MEAG) as vice president of public relations. He retired from this position in 1994. An avid pilot, he owned a Cessna single engine airplane and flew his family and friends to various vacation and business locations. After his retirement, he volunteered with Angel Flight to use his own plane to provide transportation for patients who cannot use or afford commercial airlines. For this, he was awarded the Atlanta 11 Alive Community Service Award. He also taught Public Relations at Georgia State University and was inducted into the Order of the Phoenix, the honor society for the Georgia Public Relations Society of America. Don enjoyed volunteering with the U.S.O. at the Atlanta airport, greeting returning military personnel and serving on the 1996 Atlanta Olympics Committee. He was an active member of Peachtree Presbyterian Church in Atlanta, serving as an elder and on the Food Pantry Committee, and later joined First Presbyterian Church in Spartanburg.

In 2015, Don and Lorie moved to Summit Hills in Spartanburg, SC to be near their daughter and her family. They moved in late 2023 to HarborChase of Riverwalk in Rock Hill, SC. 

Don was a long-time active member of Kiwanis Club, serving as president of the Atlanta Chapter and member of the Spartanburg Club.

He always had a twinkle in his eye and was known for his out-going personality, his ability to make friends, his love of family, and his tireless energy in volunteerism.  

He is survived by his wife, Lorie; daughter, Susan Secord Marion and her husband Douglas of Chester, SC; and three grandchildren: Sarah Whitfield Marion of Rock Hill, SC; Laura Douglass Marion Tibbetts and her husband Bowen of St. Augustine, FL; and Peyton Donaldson Marion and his wife Kaileigh of Charlotte, NC.

A memorial service will be held 2:00 PM, Friday, July 19, 2024 at First Presbyterian Church, 393 E. Main St., Spartanburg, SC 29302. The family will have a private committal service. 

In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations to First Presbyterian Church 393 E. Main Street, Spartanburg, SC 29302 or Angel Flight, 2000 Airport Road, Suite 227, Atlanta, GA 30341.