James Donald “coach Don” Haley Obituary

James Donald “coach Don” Haley attended Bay City High School in Bay City, TX. View the obituary, post a memory, or share a photo about James Donald “coach Don” Haley.

Graduation Year	Faculty
Date of Passing	Sep 13, 2005
About	James Donald “Coach Don” Haley, 88, of Bay City, died Sept. 13, 2005 at Matagorda General Hospital in Bay City. He was born July 26, 1917, in Broad Ford, Pennsylvania, to the late Anthony J. and Bridget Grace Haley. Mr. Haley was a resident of Bay City since 1948 and a member of Holy Cross Catholic Church. He was a veteran of WW II, serving in the U.S. Army Air Force, as a first lieutenant, a life member of Philip H. Parker VFW Post No. 2438, a former member of the Bay City Rotary Club, a board member and chairman for several years of the Bay City Public Library and was a life member of the Baylor Alumni Association. He received a BS degree in 1948 and his MS degree in 1951 from Baylor University. There, he lettered three years in football and baseball. In 1949, Mr. Haley became the assistant coach at Bay City High School. He moved up to head coach and athletic director in 1953 and continued in that capacity for 19 years. During his tenure, the Black Cats won 119 games, lost 59 and tied 5. Under his leadership, the Black Cats were undefeated for 23 consecutive games. For all of his efforts, he was inducted into Bay City High School Black Cat Hall of Fame Nov. 9, 2001, and into Texas High School Coaches Association Hall of Honor on July 28, 2004. He also taught American history at Bay City High School and government classes at Wharton Co. Junior College at night. On July 30, 1955, he married Evelyn McNabb Baker in Bay City, and they just recently celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary. Survivors include: his wife, Evelyn McNabb Baker Haley of Bay City; son, Charles “Chuck” Baker and wife Fran of Bay City; sister, Eileen Haley Donovan of New Salem, Pennsylvania; two grandchildren, Bryan McNabb Baker and wife Rhonda of Conroe, Texas, and Gregory Wayne Baker of Matagorda, Texas; four great-grandchildren, Morgan, Mitchell and Macey Baker, all of Conroe, and Taylor Baker of Beaumont, Mississippi, and niece, Catherine Lawhon Anderson and husband Carl, of Matagorda, Texas. He was preceded in death by his sister, Virginia Haley, and his brothers, John Henry, Bob and Raymond Haley.