Don Edward Bacon,

Don E. Bacon Sr. Don E. Bacon Sr., 76, retired serviceman and educator, went to be with the Lord on Friday, Feb. 16, 2007, at a Dallas hospital. Funeral:12:30 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 21, at New Hope Funeral Home Chapel with son-in-law the Rev. Jerry Bell officiating. Burial:Full military honors 2:30 p.m., Wednesday, Feb. 21, at DFW National Cemetery. Visitation:6-8 p.m., Tuesday, Feb. 20 at New Hope Funeral Home & Memorial Gardens, 500 East Hwy. 80, Sunnyvale. Mr. Bacon was born Nov. 5, 1930 in Chattanooga, Tennessee. He served his country in the U.S. Army from July 31, 1948 to Aug. 31, 1968 as Sgt. Major with a tour in Vietnam where he was awarded the Purple Heart. He was the first American soldier stationed in the Continental U.S. to receive the Expert Marksmanship Badge from the German Armed Forces. He served in the 11th, 82nd, and 101st Airborne Divisions, completing 2,312 jumps. Upon his retirement, he taught R.O.T.C. for 22 years at Woodrow Wilson High School in Dallas. He married Hazel Raines in Rossville, Georgia on Jan. 17, 1950. Mr. Bacon was preceded in death by his parents, Amy and Earl Bacon; brothers, Sam and Earl Jr.; and baby sister Katherine Jo. Survivors:Wife Hazel, of Mesquite; sons, Don Jr. and wife, Margie, of Temple, Michael and wife, Tricia, of San Francisco, Calif.; daughters, Linda Stoehr and husband, David, of Arlington, and Cheryl Bell and husband, Jerry, of Mesquite. Grandchildren: Brian and Brittney Bacon, Jason and Wes Stoehr, Nathan and Daniel Hancock; and Donovon and Aniston Bacon. He was blessed with 13 great grandchildren and a host of family members and friends.