Donald Ralph Kaltenbach

Donald Ralph Kaltenbach of Cleveland, OH. and Clermont FL., passed away peacefully on July 5th, 2025. He was born on January 3rd,1943 to Mildred (Schrein) Kaltenbach and Ralph E. Kaltenbach in Cleveland, Ohio.

His siblings are Joanne (William) DePetris, James (Carol Stasek) Kaltenbach, Marian (Donald) Kern, and Helen (Ronald) Beres.  All of his siblings and spouses are deceased except for Helen's husband Ronald Beres.

Don graduated from Shaw High School in East Cleveland in January of 1962. He entered the Army in 1962.  After basic training, his group received vaccinations for deployment to Vietnam. None of them left the States, though due to several of them becoming ill. Unfortunately, for Don he received the majority of the impurity in that batch of the vaccine. It caused Transverse Myelitis which is a type of paralysis which may or may not be temporary in various parts of the body.

After 12 months in the hospital and rehab, he returned home being able to walk with 2 canes. More rehab and he eventually was strong enough to walk without the canes.

He met Donna (nee Raymond) during the summer of 1966. They were married on June 22, 1968.

They were blessed with 6 children: Karen, Laura, Mary, David (Brigette), Raymond, and Susan (Joel) McAndrew.

Don’s pride and joy were his two grandsons: Christian and Charlie McAndrew.

Their family is completed with a family friend, Jeanne (Chris) Mann and daughters Kylee and Kinsley.

Don is also survived by his nieces and their husbands, as well as his great nieces and nephew.

Don's work life took many turns from type setter for his brother's print shop in his teens to an office assistant. He finally found his career at the USPS where he worked for 20 years, mostly for the city of Painesville.

Don belonged to many organizations. Most notably the Knights of Columbus at St. Bede's and Blessed Sacrament Church in Clermont, Florida. He also served as Lay Minister at St. Bede the Venerable Church in Mentor, Ohio and Corpus Christi Church in Celebration, Florida.

Don loved talking to everyone he met and had a wicked sense of humor. Don was a Browns and Guardians fan. Loved any episode of Little House on the Prairie. He was great at story telling and doing impressions with his sister, Helen. Don loved his sweets and Pepsi, but his biggest loves were his children and grandchildren.

The family wants to thank the staff, especially the nurses of the CARES Tower at Louis Stokes Cleveland VA Medical Center for taking wonderful care of our father.

Friends will be received 10:00 AM – 11:00 AM, Wednesday, July 16, 2025, at St. Bede’s Catholic Church, 9114 Lakeshore Blvd., Mentor, Ohio.  Funeral Mass will immediately follow at 11:00 AM at the Church.  Burial will be at Western Reserve Memorial Gardens.

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