Donald Joseph LeBlanc, 70, of Colchester, Vt., passed away peacefully on Monday, July 6, 2026. He spent his final days surrounded by the love of his family and friends.
Donald was born on October 20, 1955, in Newport, Vt., to Norman and Celine (Bonneau) LeBlanc. He was raised in various communities throughout Vermont’s Northeast Kingdom.
Donald married Cathy Ste. Marie in North Troy, Vt., on July 28, 1984. Together, they shared nearly 42 years of marriage and built a life centered on their love of family.
Donald was a hard worker and spent 29 years working at IBM as a maintenance technician and later drove for O’Reilly Auto Parts. A natural tinkerer, he spent countless hours at his work benches fixing or reinventing things. Things were never truly broken unless Donald couldn’t fix it.
He had many passions, including hunting, snowmobiling, searching for shark teeth, traveling, and spending time near the water, whether on a beach vacation or at the family camp on Lake Champlain. He enjoyed sharing brewskis with his friends and telling stories using his unique sayings, affectionately known as “Donny-isms”.
Living with ALS was extraordinarily difficult, and Donald faced its devastating challenges with courage and remarkable strength. Even as his disease progressed, he remained determined to live life to its fullest. In his final months of life, he was able to go on one last hunting trip, take several snowmobile rides and spend quality time with loved ones in his garage.
Donald loved his family immensely. His greatest joy was to see both daughters graduate from college and to walk them down the aisle at their weddings. He was ecstatic to become a Pepere, and nothing brought him more happiness than spending time with his granddaughters.
Donald is survived by his wife, Cathy; daughters, Chelsea LaFramboise and her husband, John, and Lindsay Campbell and her husband, Joey; granddaughters, Callie LaFramboise and Makenna Campbell; father, Norman LeBlanc; sisters, Lucy Bathalon and her husband, Paul, and Gloria Blake and her husband, Bill; and many nieces and nephews.
He was preceded in death by his mother, Celine (Bonneau) LeBlanc; father-in-law, Paul Ste. Marie; brother-in-law, Peter Ste. Marie; and nephew Aaron Demers.
A funeral mass will be held on August 31, 2026, 11 a.m., at Our Lady of Grace Church in Colchester, followed by a celebration of life at the Main Barn at Lang Farms in Essex Junction. Feel free to wear something camo in his honor.
His family and friends will be participating in a fundraiser for ALS in September. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made to their Walk to Defeat ALS team, Don’s Dears.
Please use the following link if you wish to donate: web.alsa.org/goto/donsdears.
This article appears in July 22 • 2026.
I had the privilege of working with Don for many years at O’Reilly Auto Parts. Don was a very hard worker with a great attitude would always be there to lend a helping hand no matter what the task. Truly a great man he will be greatly missed here at O’Reilly Auto Parts.