Dr. Donald Harvey Lakin

Donald Harvey Lakin’s life will be celebrated in a public memorial service on Saturday, June 18, 2022, at the First Congregational Church (United Church of Christ) of Cadillac (200 E Harris St, Cadillac, MI 49601). The service will begin at 11:00 a.m. Dr. Lakin and his wife, Pat, bought a cottage on Lake Mitchell in 1970. They became full-time Cadillac residents in 1985. Don was a founding board member of the Cadillac YMCA and played an instrumental role in the capital campaign resulting in construction of the Cadillac Area YMCA Dillon Community Center. Don served on the Cadillac Area Schools Board of Education from 1988 to 2000 and was a long-time member of the Kiwanis Club of Cadillac. He was pleased to support many local organizations, including Eagle Village, OASIS, the After 26 Depot, Love Inc., Project Christmas,the Stehouwer Free Clinic, and the Cadillac Community Foundation. He is a former member of Christ United Methodist Church in Detroit and the Cadillac United Methodist Church. For the last eight years, the Cadillac Congregational Church (U.C.C.) has been Don’s church home. The Cadillac Area Community Foundation acknowledged Don and Pat Lakin’s contributions to the Cadillac community in 2011 with recognition as Philanthropists of the Year. Don was born on June 17, 1930, and raised on the east side of Detroit. After graduation from high school, Don attended the Detroit Institute of Technology and then the Pennsylvania College of Optometry, from which he graduated in 1953 with his Doctor of Optometry (O.D.) degree. Dr. Lakin practiced in the Detroit area for over thirty years, establishing what is now Family Eye Care Associates. In the 1980s, Dr. Lakin began working with the Michigan College of Optometry at Ferris State University and affiliated with what is now Advanced Optometry in Cadillac. Dr. Lakin was a leader in optometry and optometric education. The Michigan Optometric Association recognized him with a Lifetime Achievement Award and for five years he chaired the Association of Practice Management Education. He retired from the College of Optometry in 2000 as an associate professor. Don’s family celebrates him as a man who worked hard and played hard, providing for his family, and caring for his community. He enjoyed water skiing, sailing, swimming, bicycling, snow skiing, driving convertibles, and reading. In his seventies he completed multiple Pedal Across Lower Michigan and Michigander bicycle tours with his children and grandchildren. Don continued to both ski and bicycle into his eighties. Don’s wife, Pat, died in 2013, after nearly sixty-two years of marriage. Daughter Candy Lakin, daughter-in-law Barbara Lewis-Lakin, a granddaughter, and a great granddaughter also predeceased Don. Pat Steinhour, dear friend, and companion in the last years of his life, survives him, as do family members Bill Lakin, Jean Lakin, Cindy Morley, Mark Morley, Shawn Lewis-Lakin, John Smith, Kim Clark, and Jennifer Clark, twelve grandchildren and thirteen great grandchildren. Dr. Lakin died on February 1, 2022. Memorial contributions in Don’s name may be made to the Cadillac Area YMCA, 9845 Campus Dr., Cadillac, MI 49601 or www.cadillacareaymca.org. An online guestbook is available at www.petersonfh.com.

Dr. Donald Harvey Lakin

June 17, 1930 - February 1, 2022