Donald Ray Marshall, age 90, passed away peacefully with his family by his side on April 1, 2026 in Chesterfield, MO.  He was born on March 28, 1936 in Flint, MI, the only child of William Roy and Helen Irene Marshall.  Don graduated from Jerseyville High School and earned his bachelor's, master's and specialist in education degrees from Southern Illinois University.

Don started his 40-year career in education in the Alton School District in 1958 where he touched the lives of many children as both teacher and principal.  After 20 years in Alton, Don devoted an additional 20 years to education in the Parkway School District before retiring.  His love for educating and positively influencing children continued past retirement through his part-time work as a school bus driver for several more years. Don enjoyed staying busy and spent many years working as an usher at the Dome/America's Center as well as volunteering at St. Luke's Hospital.  In his free time, he loved to spend time in his yard and garden as well as his woodworking shop. Don was extremely talented and enjoyed making furniture, shelving and other unique pieces for the entire family. He was also an avid St. Louis Cardinals fan and loved to do puzzles.

Don's true passion was traveling which he shared with his loving wife Joan of 40 years. Their home away from home that was the most special to them was Estes Park, Colorado and Rocky Mountain National Park. They shared their love for hiking and the outdoors with the entire family who have all grown up with a love of the mountains.  Besides Colorado, Don also had a fondness for Walt Disney and enjoyed many trips to several different Disney properties over the years. He was proud of his Mickey Mouse collection of memorabilia.  In his younger days, he also took many canoe trips with his son.  Other favorite trips for Don and Joan included Branson, MO, taking numerous cruises to a wide variety of destinations and participating in several road scholar educational trips. Their sense of adventure was contagious for those who traveled with them over the years, and Don was known as the ultimate tour guide.

Don is survived by his wife, Joan Marshall, his children David Marshall (Lisa) of Alton, IL and Jennifer Ruckman (Chris) of O'Fallon, MO, and his stepchildren Amy Briley (Mike) of Overland Park, KS and Nancy Sobotka (Brad) of Wildwood, MO.  He was deeply cherished and adored by his eight grandchildren, Shawn, Andrew, Sam, Tommy, Tanner, Sydney, Mackenzie and Lucas.

Services: Funeral service at the SCHRADER Funeral Home and Crematory, 14960 Manchester Road at Holloway, Ballwin, Tuesday, April 7, 2026 at 10:00 a.m. Pastor Dave Burgess will officiate. Memorials may be made to College of the Ozarks , Shriners Children's - St. Louis , or the National Federation of the Blind . Visitation Monday, April 6, 2026 from 4-7 p.m. Friends may sign the family's on-line guestbook at Schrader.com.