Donald Sedestrom

Donald Arved Sedestrom, Livonia educator, died at his home in Livonia surrounded by his family on March 22, his 86th birthday. He was born in Highland Park, the oldest son of Arved and Selma Sedestrom. He went to Detroit public schools and graduated from Detroit Northern High School in 1945. He attended Lake Superior State University for two years, then graduated with his bachelor's in education from Central Michigan University in 1951. He earned his Master's in counseling from Eastern Michigan in 1965. A lifelong teacher and guidance counselor, he spent the bulk of his career at Livonia Churchill High School and Livonia Stevenson High School, and as a career counselor in private practice. He was drafted into the Army at the end of WWII and spent 2 years serving with the 9th Infantry Division as an MP in Berlin. For the last several decades, he enjoyed reunions with the Division, and was a member of the American Legion. He became a Mason in 1960 and a member of Scottish Rite in 1975. He was active on the Scholarship and Medical Committees, the Board of Trustees, and the Board of the Masonic Pathways senior home. His family estimates that he spent tens of thousands of hours volunteering in the service of others, including as a Deacon and Elder in the Presbyterian Church USA, at the Freedom Center at Detroit Metro Airport, as the Congressional Liaison to Michigan's 11th Congressional District for AARP, as an Ambassador for the Road Scholar (formerly known as Elderhostel) , various programs and committees of First Presbyterian Church of Northville, and the Ann Arbor VA Hospital. He received many awards for his volunteer contributions over the years, including the the Meritorious Service Award of the 32 Degree Masons of the Valley of Detroit in 1994 and the AARP Michigan Shining Star Award in 2005. He greatly enjoyed reading, birding and travel. He is survived by Roberta, his wife of 49 years, his brother Robert of Chicago, IL, his four children; Martha Guthrie of Arlington, VA; Laurie Krell of Ypsilanti, Karin Wertheim of Berkeley, CA, and John Sedestrom of Livonia, and eight grandchildren. He will be dearly missed - especially his genuine interest in others, kindness, and sense of humor. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to Angela Hospice (www.angelahospice.org/donate or 866-464-7810) or the Detroit Free Press's Gift of Reading program (www.dfpcharities.org or 313-222-6429). A memorial service in celebrating his life is planned at First Presbyterian Church of Northville on Saturday, April 13, at 1:00pm. Please leave a thought or memory.