Donald J. Lang, PGM (1937-2025)
by Michael Greenzeiger, PGM
Brother Donald J. Lang has passed on from mortal life, but his accomplishments and all the lives he has touched live on after him. Don lived a life dedicated to Odd Fellowship and to caring for the communities he belonged to and those in need.
Don was born in Elizabeth, NJ in 1937 and received his Electrical Engineering degree from the Stevens Institute of Technology in 1959. He married Sister Mary Lou in 1962. They have two children, daughter Ann Marie and son DeJay. The family moved to California in 1968. Don retired from IBM after 36 years of service as development engineer. During his career at IBM, Don received 16 patents, was widely published, and also received many awards for his leadership and achievements.
Don became an Odd Fellow in 1988 when he joined Cupertino Lodge No. 70. He joined Philotesian Rebekah Lodge in 1991, Barnes Encampment No. 77 in 1991, and Canton Santa Clara No. 6 in 1992. More recently, Don has also been a member of Mountain View Lodge No. 244 and became a charter member of Xanadu Sanctorum No. 321 of AMOS in 2014. Don has served extensively beyond his local lodge participation, serving as DDGM of District No. 107 multiple times. He served as Grand Instructor for Grand Master Gerald Poarch 1992-1993 and served on the Grand Lodge Board of Directors for 7 years before being elected Grand Warden in 2000. Don served as Grand Master of California 2002-2003 and then as Grand Representative to Sovereign Grand Lodge from 2004 to 2012. During his long tenure as Grand Rep, Don served as chair of the SGL Communications Committee in addition to various other appointments.
In Cupertino Lodge, Don served as editor of the Triple Links newsletter for many years and also as hall manager, working diligently to ensure the lodge had a steady income and was able to build up a comfortable financial cushion. Don was also Lodge Treasurer for many years. Together with Mary Lou, Don helped to produce and assemble the District 107 program books each year. At the Grand Lodge level, Don was chairman of the Grand Lodge Vision 2001 Committee, focused on Membership, Redevelopment, and Public Relations. He also founded and led the Odd Fellows Officer’s Education Seminars for over a decade, a program which has continued to this day. He worked hard to move our Order into the new millennium through the use of new technologies and teaching materials for Grand Lodge. For all of Don’s achievements in the Order and beyond, Don was awarded the Meritorious Service Jewel in 2008.
Outside of Odd Fellowship, Don was also extremely active in his church and other community organizations including the De Anza Lions Club. He was a Cub Scouts Den Leader from 1980-1983 and a Boy Scout Leader from 1983-1987. He also supported numerous other non-profit organizations and clubs. One of his major interests was bowling; he went twice a week with other Odd Fellows.
While Don’s life of service through Odd Fellowship and other groups has been exemplary, his public activities only tell part of the story. Don has always worked behind the scenes to help others, never seeking glory for his acts of charity and compassion. Due to his humility and modesty, we will never know the full extent of Don’s selfless acts. Don has always looked to the future, developing new leaders and encouraging his lodge family to deepen their own involvement in the Order. He has welcomed new ideas and opinions, even if they were different from his own, and has unselfishly passed the mantle of leadership on to his successors. We have all been deeply touched by Don’s enthusiasm, his kindness, and his dedication.
I am reminded of the words of the Venerable Warden, so often delivered from memory by Don in the Initiatory Degree to so many generations of new members, “In the practice of Friendship, Love, and Truth will be found the best safeguard against the ills of life.” Never have I met an Odd Fellow who better exemplified this maxim than Brother Donald J. Lang. His life of true and faithful service should stand to remind us all of what we have pledged to do as Odd Fellows and Rebekahs. Forget it not, forget it not.
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