Danny Donovan remembered as a pioneer in many respects

A resident of the city for eight decades, Danny Donovan, passed away last Saturday and will be remembered as one of the pioneers of the business community of the city.
Born on 12 November 1938 in Lydenburg as the youngest of three children, Donovan moved to Pietersburg with his family at the age of two after his father was killed in a motor accident.
Older residents of the city will know that Donovan was the man behind the first television broadcast from the then Pietersburg in the late seventies and that he was also the designer and installer of the biggest outdoor sound system in the southern hemisphere at Zion Christian City outside the city during the eighties. The sound of this system could be heard for more than two kilometres and was followed by a smaller system at St Engenas Zion Christian Church which he also designed. He was a well-known face at Danny’s Electrical from 1988 and was instrumental in the advancement of amateur cycling in the city.
His passion for antiques, motor vehicles, bicycles, radios and gramophones made him a well-known collector and he was a member of a number of vintage car clubs, the last being the Limpopo Classic Car Club.
He married Connie Botha on 1 November 1969 and the couple had three sons. Connie passed away in 1993 after a battle with cancer. In January 1995 he married Joey Pohl and accepted her children and grandchildren as his own. The couple had a passion for travel and it came to an end in 2019 when Joey was admitted to Martha Hofmeyr Tehuis. Donovan carried on to visit her every day in anticipation of her return to home where he still attended to her garden that was always in a pristine condition. It did however not happen and he was also admitted to Martha Hofmeyr Tehuis in January this year.
Donovan’s son Stephen remembers his father as a man that was loved by all. “He was always the first to engage into a conversation with any stranger that resulted in a long talk about common grounds and someone that was known to both. He had a heart of gold and was always prepared to lend a hand or repair something for other elderly people,” Stephen adds that his father built his own portable radio, organ, boat, caravan and a trailer. “He was part of the lives of many people and will never be forgotten,” Stephen concludes.
Donovan is survived by Joey and three sons, Lionel, Stephen and Phillip, three daughters-in-law, seven grandchildren, three stepdaughters, a stepson and four stepchildren.

Story: Barry Viljoen