In this episode, we focus in on Don and Kay and how they met. Many thanks to Mark, Robin, David and Jean (my mom) for their information on this episode and the next one.
Malcolm Donald (Don) Merrill was born 18 June 1927 in St. Louis, Missouri, while his father Malcolm was attending medical school there. As you will recall, Malcolm, Thelma, Don and Bruce later moved to Princeton, New Jersey, and then to San Francisco, California.
Around age 9, Don was struck with rheumatic fever, which caused him to miss six weeks of school. (It seems like someone mentioned that this illness may have had something to do with his interest in medicine).
Don Merrill with rheumatic fever.
Don later earned his Eagle Scout award. Way to go!
Don Merrill, Eagle Scout.
After finishing high school, Don was drafted into the Navy. Jean remembers seeing him off at the train station. Fortunately, the day he left for boot camp was the day Japan surrendered ("V-J Day", probably August 14, 1945). Don said, "It was the one-two punch that got Japan to surrender: First the bomb, and then they heard I got drafted." Even though Japan had surrendered, Don still went through boot camp and served in the Navy for 18 months. While there he went to radio school in Michigan and Mississippi, which is where he learned about electronics.
Don Merrill, Navy, about 1945-1946.
Don Merrill, Navy, about 1945-1946
This Navy service qualified him for the G.I. Bill, which helped pay his way through college at UC Berkeley.
Don Merrill, graduating from UC Berkeley
After graduating, he attended medical school at the University of California San Francisco (UCSF) Medical School.
Don in Medical School. San Francisco, California.
Meeting Kay
During the summer, Don worked for the Pfizer pharmaceutical company in California and traveled up the coast, meeting with doctors to sell them his drugs. So, as Mark said, "I suppose you could say he was a drug-pusher."
Don Merrill
On the weekends, Don would attend church and get a lot of good dates. The other Pfizer men he traveled with kept wondering, "How he is getting all these good dates?"
When he got to Seattle, he sat next to Kay (Karen Pierce Nelson) at church and started talking with her. She mentioned the floating bridge near by, and Don said that he had always wanted to see it. So they went to see it, and then they saw each other every day until he left.
Lake Washington Floating Bridge, near Seattle, 1954.
He got to know her parents, Commander Frank & Gertrude Nelson. They must have been impressed with him, because they invited him back as a house guest over Christmas. (Frank had been a commander in the Coast Guard, but after having children, decided he wanted to be home more, so he started working closer to home, investigating ship wrecks and such).
Kay went to BYU, and Don visited her there. She was feeling a bit inadequate, though, she being a freshman and Don being a medical student and a few years older than her, so they had a bit of a falling out. [When I heard that, I was having a hard time putting "Kay" and "inadequate" in the same sentence.]
But as Don talked to his father and hers, he was told, "Faint heart ne'er won fair lady." So, he decided he would write to her anyway.
Kay was planning to go back to BYU, but visited him first in Berkeley to see how things would go. While she was there, they got engaged! Thelma apparently woke up to Don slapping her cheeks and exclaiming, "We're engaged!" (Kay later said she didn't really have any intention of going back to BYU anyway, but perhaps she had to at least sound like she had a plan!)
Don & Kay, engaged, 1952.
In Mark's recording of "Pearls from the Past, 69 Questions", one of the questions was regarding chocolate, and here is what Thelma said about Kay. (You can click below to listen to Thelma tell it as you read along).
When we bought See’s Candy, there was always a chocolate marshmallow with a green top and nobody would take that. That was the last piece of chocolate that got eaten. So Don and Kay get engaged, and we’re going to have an open house. So we went to See’s so I could buy some candy. I said – Kay, I’ve got one quarter left here. What piece would you like? She said – I’ll take that with the green on it. Ah, I said -- for heaven’s sake, I thought you were perfect, but how can we have one so perfect that she will take the green one?
Karen Pierce Nelson (Kay), 1953.
Don and Kay were married April 27, 1953 in the Salt Lake Temple.
Don and Kay Merrill, Salt Lake Temple, April 27, 1953.
Wedding party, April 1953.
Don & Kay Merrill, Frank & Gertrude Nelson, Sue, Jean Merrill, Thelma & Malcolm Merrill.
Continuing on with the story about chocolates, Thelma said,
Well, so, Kay and Don got married. They got married in the Salt Lake temple and we were going from there on up to Seattle to have the wedding reception. So Don and Kay rode with Frank and Gertrude in their car and Malcolm and I and I guess Jean was with us. And we said, "Now don’t lets get lost from each other. If you can’t see us in the rear mirror, then stop in the next town you come to and wait on the outskirts. Then we’ll get together and see each other more." So when we got up to Logan, I said to Malcolm ,"Oh, let’s buy them some Bluebird chocolates." So we go in and buy some Bluebird chocolates and then we come out and drive to the edge of Logan and there Frank and Gertrude were. And so they came forward to us bringing us a box of Bluebird chocolates! I thought that was so fun.
Don & Kay Merrill, Gertrude & Frank Nelson, Thelma Merrill, Jean Merrill.
I love this picture of Don and Kay, both standing the same way. I've found that there are a lot of pictures of them looking at each other. So cute!
Wedding reception (probably in Seattle, Washington).
Kay Merrill, Jean Merrill, (anyone know who the other two brides maids were?)
Frank & Gertrude Nelson, Kay & Don Merrill, Thelma & Malcolm Merrill
Don & Kay Merrill
Don & Kay Merrill, Kay wearing her Indian Sari.
What a wonderful couple! Don was one of the sweetest men I've ever met, and Kay was always so great to everyone and seemed to have unbounded capacity to serve.
In our next episode, we follow the newlyweds to the east coast and welcome David, Robin and Mark to the scene!
