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Rear Admiral William Donald Daniels, U.S. Navy (Retired) passed away peacefully on October 24 at Sacred Heart Hospital in Pensacola, Florida following a brief illness. Born in Birmingham, Alabama on March 1, 1928, he was the son of the late William L. and Edith C. Daniels, and is survived by his only and beloved sibling, Jean Daniels Howells of Birmingham. Bill enlisted in the Navy in January 1944 and following Recruit Training and Signal School at Great Lakes, Illinois, he served in the Pacific Theater for the remainder of World War II. His wartime service included assignments with the Pacific Fleet Service Force and with the Royal Australian Navy in support of the successful campaigns in New Guinea and the Philippines. Following World War II, he returned to Birmingham to complete his secondary schooling at Woodlawn High School. Bill briefly attended the University of Alabama while also serving as a Reservist in the Atlantic Fleet Mine Force and at the Navy Base, Charleston, South Carolina before earning an Alabama congressional appointment to the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland. He entered USNA in July 1950, and graduated with the class of 1954. At USNA, Bill's motivation for all-things Navy continued to grow, and it was in Annapolis where he met the love of his life, Joan Harvey. Following his graduation, they were married two days later on June 6, 1954 in Virginia Beach, Virginia. Following a variety of afloat assignments in destroyers and diesel-powered submarines, Bill completed a tour as First Lieutenant in USS PRINCETON (LPH 5) in 1968. Three Western Pacific deployments and nine amphibious assaults during the Vietnam conflict were conducted by PRINCETON during this period. Shore duty assignments followed included a tour as Commanding Officer, Naval Reserve Center, Omaha, Nebraska, and a tour on the staff of Commander, Naval Reserve Training Command in Omaha. He then served in the Officer Distribution Section, Bureau of Naval Personnel, Arlington, Virginia. Returning to sea, he served as Commissioning Executive Officer, USS PONCE (LPD 15), and then as Commanding Officer, USS VOGELGESANG (DD 862) in the early 1970's. Following an additional tour at the Bureau of Naval Personnel, he assumed command of Destroyer Squadron 34 based in Charleston, SC. During this tour, he commanded the 1978 Great Lakes Cruise Squadron, the first presence of Navy warships on the Great Lakes in over 30 years. Promoted to Rear Admiral in 1980, he served as Deputy Commander, Naval Reserve Force and Commander, Naval Reserve Surface Force in New Orleans, Louisiana, until his retirement from the Navy on March 1, 1985. Bill lived the remainder of his service-oriented life in Orange Beach (Ono Island), Alabama. He held membership in numerous professional and business organizations and in the early 1990's was the President of the Naval Academy Alumni Association, Pensacola Chapter. He was a founding member of the Perdido Bay United Methodist Church, and he served as a Red Cross Volunteer at the Naval Hospital, Pensacola for over 20 years. He is survived by his wife of 65 years, Joan Harvey Daniels, and their three children, CAPT William Dwight Daniels, USN, Retired (Carla), Jane Daniels Ferguson (Tom) and Kimberly Daniels Lloyd (Lamar), seven grandchildren, one great-grandchild, nieces, nephews and cousins. To his loving family, he was also known as "Bear" and "Uncle Bill". Bill's family would like to thank Marissa, Kathy and Amy at Answered Prayer, the Orange Beach (Ono Island) Fire & Rescue Dept., and Sacred Heart Hospital / Covenant Care for their compassionate care. A memorial service and celebration of Bill's extraordinary life will be at 3:00 PM on November 23, 2019 at Perdido Bay United Methodist Church. Interment will be in the spring of 2020 at the United States Naval Academy Columbarium. In lieu of flowers, donations in Bill's memory may be made to the Building Fund at Perdido Bay United Methodist Church, 13360 Innerarity Point Rd Pensacola, Florida 32507.

Published in The Birmingham News on Nov. 3, 2019