IN MEMORIAM

Donald C. Payton, born October 25, 1938, died peacefully at the Jack Byrne Center for Palliative and Hospice Care, Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center, Lebanon, NH on September 26, 2018.

Son of the late Martin J. and Agnes (Mont) Payton, of Pawtucket, RI, Don was married for 56 years to his beloved wife, Patricia J. (Steliga) Payton, with whom he had three sons, Donald Jr., Patrick J. and Michael S. Payton.

Mr. Payton earned his bachelor's degree in Business Administration from Northeastern University, Boston, MA, in 1962, and graduated from Saint Raphael Academy, Pawtucket, RI, in 1956. With his charismatic personality, he made friends of associates and colleagues throughout his career. Don was president of Payton Enterprises and a self-employed manufacturers sales representative in the metals field.

He loved playing football and could relay play-by-play descriptions of every game he played in or watched. At St. Ray's, as Captain, he led the undefeated team to win the state football championship in 1955. He cherished the winning game ball signed by all his "Saints" teammates, and donated it to the school for posterity at their 60 ^th class reunion.

He continued to play football at Northeastern, and coached the Darlington Braves Pre-Teen Football Team. When he moved with his wife to Plainville, MA, he founded the Plainville Packers, serving as president and head coach. He initiated membership in the RI Pre-Teen football league, enabling the new team to participate. The Plainville Packers won the league championship during their second year, defeating every experienced powerhouse team in RI in 1969.

Don was subsequently elected to the Board of Directors of the Boston-based 33 Football Club and inducted into the Providence Gridiron Club Football Hall of Fame. He also excelled in golf and won many tournaments as a member of the Pawtucket Country Club and the Quechee Club in VT. He enjoyed many great tennis matches throughout the years and was an avid recreational skier.

In later life, Don turned his attention to writing, and two of his poems were selected from hundreds of submissions for inclusion in a Vermont-wide poetry contest in 2016 and 2017. He also authored a book he titled Friends are Thicker Than Water: Tales of a Misspent Youth, published in 2009.

After being introduced to the Quechee Lakes Association by his late friend Phil Aylward and his wife, Brenda, he bought property and built a home in the 1970s, eventually transitioning from a vacation home to a permanent residence in Vermont. Always the life of the party, he hosted several of the Quechee Club's talent shows, and entertained wherever he went with his keyboard and charming impersonations of Louis Armstrong.

On a trip to Ireland Don serendipitously encountered his relatives living on the family homestead in Swinford, County Mayo. He and his distant cousin Martin Peyton (the original spelling of the family name) formed a close bond that led to many family members in America and Ireland meeting each other for the first time and visiting to and from "across the pond."

He is survived by his wife and sons; grandson Thomas Patrick Payton; daughters-in-law Sheryn and Ewa Payton; devoted sister Joan Plaziak; brothers Martin J. Payton, Jr. and David G. Payton; sisters-in-law Heather S.J. Steliga, Angela Steliga, and Catherine Payton; and brothers-in-law Robert Zannini and Raymond Tulisalo. Pre-deceased by his brother-in-law Stanley J. Steliga, Don has been a loving mentor to Spencer and Savannah Steliga, Stanley and Sherri Steliga, and Kimberly Lacombe, as well as many Payton family nieces, nephews and cousins.

A private Mass at Our Lady of the Snows Catholic Church in Woodstock, Vermont, was followed by burial at the Quechee Cemetery. A Celebration of Don's Life will be held in Rhode Island on Sunday, October 14, 2018, 1:00pm, at Saint Raphael's Coutu Theater, 43 Maynard Street, Pawtucket, RI 02860.

On behalf of Mr. Payton, the family wishes to thank and commend the exceptional medical providers at DHMC, the Jack Byrne Center, Hanover Terrace, Alice Peck Day Hospital, and the Visiting Nurses of VT and NH for their professionalism, dedication and sincere care.

Donations honoring Donald C. Payton may be made to Saint Raphael Academy, Advancement Office, 123 Walcott St, Pawtucket, RI 02860, or to any of the medical organizations mentioned above.

Condolences may be sent to the online guest book at: Cabot Funeral Home, Woodstock, VT, http://www.cabotfh.com/obituary/donald-payton