Mr. Don Mateyka

On March 26, 2026, Don Mateyka lost his battle with multiple myeloma. Don made the world a better place for many people; his passing leaves a very large void in the lives of those of us who now must go on without him. Born on April 29, 1950 in Flushing, New York, to loving parents Mildred and Vladimir (Lod), Don’s older sister, Susan, adored him from the moment she first saw him. Like his father, Don developed an interest in flying—and in all things mechanical. Many items were disassembled to satisfy his curiosity of ‘how things worked’; not all were reassembled as easily as they came apart. Growing up in New Hyde Park, New York, Don graduated from Herricks High School in 1967, then went on to Lehigh University in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, where he majored in mechanical engineering and joined Air Force ROTC. Upon graduation from Lehigh, he was commissioned as a 2nd Lt in the US Air Force. He attended undergraduate pilot training at Laredo AFB, in Texas, graduating at the top of his class. He was selected for duty as a T-38 Instructor Pilot at Columbus AFB in Mississippi, where he distinguished himself over the next three years with the 50th Flying Training Squadron. After completing his instructor duties, Don was selected to be a C-141B Aircraft Commander with the 63rd Military Airlift Wing based at Norton AFB, Redlands, California. He flew numerous sorties supporting Air Force missions throughout the Pacific (Alaska, Hawaii, Japan, Korea and Guam) before concluding his Air Force commitment at Norton AFB. It was then that made the decision to leave the Air Force and start another outstanding career; this time with Delta Airlines. Don remained a Delta Pilot until he reached the mandatory retirement age of 65. It was about 6 months after starting his career at Delta that Don met the woman who was to become the love of his life—and he, hers: Delta flight attendant, Mary-Ellen Sooley. Mary Ellen was welcomed into the family by his parents as well as by his sister Susan and Susan’s husband Steve. Don and Mary-Ellen shared a love of watersports, and spent many hours on Lake Alatoona in Georgia, water skiing whenever their schedules allowed. They were married September 17th, 1983, and built a home on Lost Mountain in a suburb northwest of Atlanta. Before long, they found a wonderful path just behind their house that allowed them to climb to the top of Lost Mountain: over one and a half miles through a lovely forest of oak, dogwood, sweet gum, pines and more. An almost private trail, they rarely saw anyone else on it. The peaceful trail became their twice-daily ritual, even more important once they became dog owners. There was usually a collie or two, sometimes three, plus a rescue of questionable breed to complete the picture. Buster, Rollie Casey, Patrick, Chloe, and Buddy were a few that brought great joy and were never to be forgotten. Their love of water didn’t diminish, and having a house on a lake was Don and Mary-Ellen’s joint dream. After multiple camping trips to Smith Lake in Alabama, they bought a lovely lot and built a cottage on the lake. It was a perfect lake for water skiing, with long tributaries and very little boat traffic (except for fishermen). They enjoyed many wonderful times there, including the week every June when Don’s sister, Sue, and brother-in-law, Steve, joined them there. After spending the days waterskiing, evenings often involved a happy hour cruise and dinner on the screened in porch. Good food, good wine, great company, what fun! Don and Mary-Ellen made frequent trips to Colorado to visit Sue and Steve, as well as Don and Sue’s parents, who had relocated there following their father’s retirement. Winter visits there meant holiday celebrations and trips up to the mountains for downhill and cross-country skiing. The Rockies were spectacular when snow covered the peaks, but ultimately summer, specifically September became their favorite time to rent a house for a week and hike after Labor Day when the aspens were just starting to turn color and kids were back in school! Whether in Estes Park, Durango or Steamboat Springs, each had its own unique beauty, with trails that started as woods and meadows and ended above the timberline. They enjoyed reaching a viewpoint above timberline where they would break for lunch, then descend and return to the house for communal meal preparation while sipping wine and watching the sunset. To celebrate their 25th wedding anniversary in September of 2008, Don and Mary-Ellen planned a wonderful trip to Tuscany and invited Sue and Steve to accompany them. Mary-Ellen found a country inn located just outside the tiny town of Montefiridolfi called Il Borghetto. It was an enchanting place with vineyards, gardens and olive trees, where they started each day with breakfast outside on a covered patio, usually under the watchful eye of a yellow labrador retriever hoping someone might drop a tasty morsel or two. Lake Keowee, in South Carolina, replaced Smith Lake when Don and Mary-Ellen found a beautiful spot on the water there. In 2013, after almost two years of planning and building, their new home was finally finished. Frequent trips back and forth from Atlanta, and the hassle of juggling two homes, convinced them to make the Seneca home their permanent—and only—home in 2019. Welcomed by neighbors and the community at large, they enjoyed a very active social life with new-found friends, and enjoyed visits from old friends from Atlanta, the Air Force, Lehigh and beyond. A Lehigh lake party every September became a ritual, with seven couples—including seven engineers—staying in one house at one time! A great time was had by all, hiking to beautiful waterfalls and exploring every cove of the lake, with different couples responsible for dinner each evening, and everyone participating. In 2015, having reached mandatory retirement age, Don had his final flight as a 777 Captain on a trip to Sydney, Australia. Sydney was his favorite long-haul route, and with Mary-Ellen—and an enthusiastic flight crew—on board, he completed his career with Delta, arriving home in Atlanta to the traditional hosing of his plane by one of the fire trucks. 2017 brought a new challenge when Don was diagnosed with multiple myeloma. With Mary-Ellen’s unwavering love and support, he underwent an autologous stem cell transplant at Emory University Hospital in Atlanta. Sue and Steve helped some, but Mary-Ellen was his ‘rock’. Difficult as it was, he made a great recovery. He worked hard and regained his strength, maintaining remission for almost seven years. In January of 2024, he came out of remission. New medications basically wiped-out his bone marrow, and a life-threatening bout with sepsis landed him in hospitals in Seneca and Greenville for almost two months. He received excellent care in both hospitals, returning home in May to start a long and difficult rehab. The bright side of all this was that the myeloma was once again in remission. Sadly, he subsequently came out of remission at a time when he was again battling an infection. He started treatment again, but the recurrence resulted in multiple painful compression fractures of his spine. The pain was so intense that even large doses of pain medicine brought little relief. Mary-Ellen had to make the difficult decision to call Hospice. Don spent his final days on home hospice surrounded by loving family: Mary-Ellen, his sister, Sue and their niece, Andrea. A truly wonderful person who meant the world to so many people, Don is deeply missed.

Mr. Don Mateyka

April 29, 1950 - March 26, 2026