DONALD E. WOOLLETT, 1LT, USMC
Donald Woollett '80
Lucky Bag
From the 1980 Lucky Bag:
DONALD ELBERON WOOLLETT
Walbridge, Ohio
Woolly
Don, Dr W, Woolly Bear, and last but not least Buana, came to USNA via Walbridge, Ohio. Though Walbridge is presently his family's place of residence, Don claims to be nothing but the best, southern and Texan. Woolly originally sought to become an engineer but quickly discovered that USNA was full of many such unimaginative souls. Since Buana was gifted with the talent of BS-ing he aspired to the life of none other than the History major. A certified sea lawyer, he was always called upon when his friends were in need. Being a member of the Slaughterhouse 5, "The Boys" saw fit to elect Wools honor rep. Don bought a '68 Cadillac 2/c year that looked more like a tank than a boat. All of those close to him feel that this must be the factor that swayed him toward the Marine Corps, as no other viable excuse has surfaced. Everyone hopes the Bear will immaculately maintain his room at Quantico as well as he has (?) on "The Cloud". Don is destined to become a success and he may even make the world forget F. Lee (Flee for short) Bailey.
DONALD ELBERON WOOLLETT
Walbridge, Ohio
Woolly
Don, Dr W, Woolly Bear, and last but not least Buana, came to USNA via Walbridge, Ohio. Though Walbridge is presently his family's place of residence, Don claims to be nothing but the best, southern and Texan. Woolly originally sought to become an engineer but quickly discovered that USNA was full of many such unimaginative souls. Since Buana was gifted with the talent of BS-ing he aspired to the life of none other than the History major. A certified sea lawyer, he was always called upon when his friends were in need. Being a member of the Slaughterhouse 5, "The Boys" saw fit to elect Wools honor rep. Don bought a '68 Cadillac 2/c year that looked more like a tank than a boat. All of those close to him feel that this must be the factor that swayed him toward the Marine Corps, as no other viable excuse has surfaced. Everyone hopes the Bear will immaculately maintain his room at Quantico as well as he has (?) on "The Cloud". Don is destined to become a success and he may even make the world forget F. Lee (Flee for short) Bailey.
Loss
Donald was killed in the bombing of the Marine barracks in Beirut, Lebanon, on October 23, 1983.
Other Information
From researcher Kathy Franz:
Donald graduated in 1976 from Lake High School in Millbury, Ohio. Football 10; Wrestling 10, 11, 12; Tennis 10, 11, 12; Co-Pilot 9; Campus Life 10, 11, 12; Science Club 9; Spanish Club 11; High School Quiz Team 11, 12; Bleacher Bums 12. Voted: The Smartest.
From the March 1984 issue of Shipmate:
1st. Lt. Donald Elberan Woollett USMC was killed on 23 October 1983 in the bombing of the battalion landing team headquarters at Beirut International Airport, Lebanon, where he was assigned as a member of the multinational peacekeeping force. Memorial services were held on 10 November 1983 at Fort Myer Chapel with interment in Arlington National Cemetery, and a service was also held in Bartlesville, Oklahoma, where his parents reside.
Appointed to the Naval Academy from the State of Ohio, he was graduated with the Class of 1980 and assigned to the Marine Barracks in Annapolis to assist in the indoctrination of plebes for that Summer. Basic school at Quantico followed including the infantry officers course, whereupon he joined the First Battalion, 8th Marines, as operations (liaison) officer. In August 1981 he was assigned to Bravo Company as weapons platoon commander, then attended basic amphibious embarkation school at Little Creek, Virginia, where he was honor graduate.
Early in 1982 he served as B Company embarkation officer in addition to his platoon command during a six-month deployment in the Mediterranean. His ship, NEWPORT, was extensively damaged by fire in the port of Berbera, Somalia, and the cruise continued on board NASSAU. In June of that year he was transferred to headquarters and service company where he was assigned as assistant logistics officer and battalion embarkation officer.
In May of 1983 he was deployed to Beirut with the 24th Marine Amphibious Unit. In the days prior to the bombing of the headquarters, he was occupied with loading the battalion for departure for home in November. He was a life member of the Naval Academy Alumni Association.
He is survived by his parents. Col. (USAFR Ret.) and Mrs. Paul R. Woollett, 1516 Whitney Court, Bartlesville OK 74006; two sisters; and his paternal grandmother.
From The Daily Oklahoman on November 9, 1983:
Mrs. Woollett Tuesday quoted from letters in which her son expressed confidence that the U.S. peacekeeping mission could be successful.
He spoke in one letter of driving on patrol through Beirut and of seeing older men stiffen and salute the Americans.
"They remember the Marines of 1958," he wrote. "We brought them peace the last time.”
Of the peace mission and his country's role as a peacekeeper, the young Marine officer wrote, "It is a long shot but I believe it is possible.
"The people, themselves, seem to rely on us for peace.
"We may or may not be successful. But the undertaking, the quest itself, is noble.
"No other nation but the U.S. would ever attempt it."
Donald is buried at Arlington National Cemetery.
Remembrances
From Chuck Wright, who was Don's Basic School roommate, via email on November 20, 2022:
Don had a huge heart. I had connected with the daughter or wife of his company commander from the Beirut FB page. She shared a story about Don that was so him. They had a Christmas eve party for the officers. Don was the last to leave, was helping clean up and stayed until late into the night helping the CO put together Christmas toys.
He loved Doritos. He was not a loud or pushy person; he was quiet with real depth. One of my big regrets at TBS was not having him take me to a NAVY game while I was there. So much in and around DC and I was a typical young/dumb barely out of teenage years too busy chasing girls and missing out on things of value and worth seeing. Don was a bit more discerning when it came to the fairer sex. He was looking for the right girl (I was looking for Ms Right Now) and I hate he never found her. Of course after we left TBS, I only saw him once and then briefly. So maybe he did find that right girl.
He was also much more a serious student than I was. They left us together in our Q room after TBS, Don was doing Infantry officer school and I was marking time till my orders kicked in for P-Cola. I will never forget him coming in, finished with training for the day. They were working with mortars. He’s explaining how they did adjustments etc. The look and enthusiasm on his face, when he talked about being the only student to adjust fire perfectly on target. The joy and pride of the accomplishment was evident.
When I read the Fallen Comrade table during our ball, I can always see Don with that funny smirk on his face, chomping on Doritos doing his best to break me up. And it usually works.
Wooly Bear was a REALLY good man who was taken way too young from us.
Photographs
Donald, seated in center. Photograph courtesy of Capt. Joe Grace, USN (Ret.) '80.
From his high school yearbook
From his high school yearbook
From his high school yearbook
Don and Chuck Wright in 1980. Photo courtesy Chuck Wright.
Don in 1980. Photo courtesy Chuck Wright.
"The 3rd picture is from our 1st Marine Corps Ball in 1980. Across the table [on right] is then-Lt Keith Sweeney. Keith and I both flew and were stationed in Hawaii together. He lived across the hall from Don and I. Keith flew for HMX-1 and was slated to be the 1st operational commander of a V-22 squadron. He died in a crash as they were coming into land at Quantico. There is a statue for Keith and the 3 other Marines we lost that day at the Marine Corps Museum." Photo courtesy Chuck Wright.
Related Articles
Vincent Smith '76, James Surch, Jr. '77, and David Nairn '81 were also killed in the bombing of the Marine Corps barracks in Beirut, Lebanon on October 23, 1983.
The "category" links below lead to lists of related Honorees; use them to explore further the service and sacrifice of alumni in Memorial Hall.
