Ducky with his daughter Patti 

A great man passed from the earth on a dreary Tuesday Morning. Donald Eugene (Ducky) Fridline was a tremendous family man. Marrying his baby daughter, Patti, I consider myself very lucky to know Ducky the past 20 years.

Ducky was born on the East Side of Flint in 1929 and raised in a tiny house on Maryland Avenue. One of 10 Children, they stayed very close throughout their lives, all settling in the Flint Area. One brother, Herb, was killed in a Motorcycle accident at age 18. The other five brothers all served in the US military, Ducky spending his time as a Navy Corpsman. Now that Ducky has passed, only two of the ten children are still alive. 

Ducky returned from the Navy in 1952 and married Jeanie. He got a job at Buick City and she at AC. They bought a house on the East Side of Flint in 1955 having two small boys at the time. They ended up having eight children in all. They worked different shifts so that they could handle the day care and raised all of the kids in the house which was not bigger than 1000 square feet.

An Avid Hunter, Ducky bought a large parcel near Manton, MI in 1970. Nicknamed “Bugatussle,” it became Ducky’s favorite place in the world. The small cabin that was built shortly after the purchase grew with many additions to a place were over 20 could sleep comfortably.  Hunting, exploring, riding ATV’s and enjoying the 80 acres became a passion for Ducky, his friends, and family.

Ducky faced several challenges in his life, and approached them all with vigor. He did not graduate high school in his youth, but went to adult education to get his diploma well after his 50th birthday.  A smoker for years, he had his last cigarette in 1987 when a major stroke came close to killing him. The stroke left him permanently disabled as he lost use of his right hand and would drag his right extremities for the rest of his life. In 1990 Ducky would battle and survive Prostate Cancer.

In 2001, the love of his life, Jeanie, passed away after a long illness. I and most of those close to Ducky, thought there was no way that he would be able to live on his own. He proved us all wrong, taking care of himself and doing tasks that he hadn’t done since his stroke. He was determined that he would not need assisted living, and he didn’t.

After having worsening back pain, Ducky was diagnosed with bone cancer in late June. After battling for a while, he entered the wonderful Avalon Hospice facility on September 23rd. Ducky told his children not to feel sorry for him, he had a great life and everyone was going to die at some point.  

Ducky, you did live a great life, and your legacy will live on for a long time. You made those closest to you better with the example you set. You will be missed.

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