In Memoriam of Don Meeker
In Memoriam,
One of Pacific Miniatures original founders passed away in February, 2010. He would have been 95 in April, 2010.
Don Meeker was born in 1915 in Chanute, Kansas. When he was 5 years old, his family moved to Bakersfield to work with Don’s uncle. Not long after, they moved to Glendale. His Father was a plumber and had fantastic mechanical skills which he passed on to his son while they worked together as plumbers. Don graduated in 1933 from Hoover High and married Madeleine in 1939.
As a model maker, Don started out in the Wind Tunnel Model shop at Douglas after being hired in 1940. Through the war years, Don was kept out of military service due to his production work on the B-19, DC-4 and DC-6. A notable project he was a key player in was with designer Walter Teague developing the interior of the DC-4.
Demands on the model shop steadily increased as Douglas marketed capabilities to airlines and VIPs requested models. Don teamed up with colleague Ernie White to start Pacific Miniatures. Harold Fuhrman and Orval Coker later joined Ernie and Don. Orval was a painter at Douglas and Harold was from 20th Century Fox. Together, these four comprised the initial core Pacific Miniatures team.
Space was limited at Douglas and they were encouraged to start their own shop. Ernie had a family member with a furniture factory with extra space in Alhambra so they moved there. Soon after, Pacific Miniatures had grown to occupy the entire shop and had established itself as a successful business.
We are honored to celebrate the life of Don Meeker. We are committed to building on his legacy.
Don Meeker
PacMin Founding Partner
1915-2010
