Son of Charles Oscar and Lizzie Mae Gober Burns.Husband of Marguerite Burns.Graduate of Mineral Wells High School,class of 1946.Graduate of Midwestern University,Wichita Falls,Tx,class of 1950,with a BA in business.He was married June 1,1950 to Marguerite.They had a daughter Aug.22,1956,a son Oct.29,1959. Donald enlisted in the Air Force in Mar,1951,commissioned from Officer Candidate School Mar,1952,pilot training was at Bartow Air Base,Florida,and Bryan AFB,Tx.Gunnery training was at Nellis AFB,Nevada.Assignments later were-Chitose AB,Japan;Robins AFB,Ga;Shaw AFB,SC;RAF Station,Sculthorpe,Eng;Chaumont AB,France;Holloman AFB,NM;Phan Rang AB,S Viet.;Da Nang AB,S Viet.He flew these aircraft-T-6,T-28,T-33,F-86 E & F,B-66,F-4. The F4/C Phantom Donald was flying, was shot down Dec 2,1966,approximately 50 miles NW of Hanoi.Major [later,Col] Burns,and his Weapons/Systems Operator,1st Lt.Bruce Chalmers Ducat [remains returned Mar.18,1977] were captured.1st Lt.[later Maj]Ducat was allegedly shot and killed by the N Vietnamese soldiers.Donald spent 6 years,2 months,28 days as a prisoner of war at the infamous "Hanoi Hilton",where his unwavering will to live inspired his fellow prisoners to survive the horrors of the POW camp. He was released Mar 4,1973.He retired from the Air Force after 26 years.While serving in the Air Force,Donald received 4 Distinguished Flying Crosses,a Bronze Star,Legion of Merit,a Silver Star w/Clusters,2 Purple Hearts,and the POW Medal. Col.Donald Ray Burns died of Cancer on Apr 26,1996.He received full military honors at Arlington National Cemetery,May 6,1996. There is a Memorial Rose Garden established in Mineral Wells,Texas,in honor of Donald,at Woodland Park Cemetery.