James Donald "Don" Harper, 84, of Columbus, MS passed away Monday, April 11, 2016, at his residence.

A Memorial Service will be held Saturday, April 16, 2016, at 2:00 PM in the Lowndes Funeral Home Chapel, Columbus, MS. Interment will be in Memorial Gardens, Columbus, MS with Lowndes Funeral Home directing.

James Donald "Don" Harper, Sr. was born to Oleus Elmo Harper and Lillian Williamson Harper on November 9, 1931, in Brooksville, MS. He graduated from Tuscaloosa County High School in 1949. In 1949, he met his future wife Jackie V. Lowry while on a hayride in Memphis, TN. They were married July 8, 1950. From 1951 to 1954 he served in the Air Force during the Korean War. He was stationed at Fort Benning Indianapolis and San Marcus Texas AFB before serving time at Elmendorf Air Force Base in Anchorage, Alaska where he worked in the Air Force Post Office.

In 1954, he entered second semester at the University of Alabama and graduated in 1957 with a degree in Mechanical Engineering. In 1958, he and Jackie moved to Lynchburg, Virginia where he worked for Babcock Wilcox in the Atomic Energy Division. He also worked for American Bosch Corporation as Project Engineer in Columbus, MS before being hired at the Los Alamos National Laboratory in December of 1960. He received a Master's degree in Nuclear Engineering from the University of New Mexico while working as a staff member and Assistant Division Leader of the Hydrodynamic Experiment Division.

After retiring from the lab in May of 1982, Don and Jackie moved to Hernando, MS and then back to Columbus, MS in 1986 where he lived out the rest of his life close to family and his brothers Bobo, Buddy, and Jack Harper.

He is survived by his wife of 65 years-Jackie Harper; his son-Jim Harper; daughters-Vicki Harper and Deb Williams, 4 grandchildren and 2 great-grandchildren, 2 brothers, 4 nephews, and 2 nieces.

Don liked to sing and restore cars. He also had some adventurous times traveling with his family over most of the United States during the course of his life. He even built a house by himself after retiring. He will be greatly missed and remembered as a kind man who loved his family and who was very much loved by his family.