Donald was born in Cottage Grove, Indiana to Effie Bell Starnes and Charles Arthur Gross on August 14, 1944. He's the beloved husband of Kathy (Downey) Gross; cherished father of Brian Keith Gross and Dawna Kaye (Gabriel Sauls) Gross; treasured grandfather of Landon Cole Gross, Trey Garcia Gross, Chloe Gabrielle Sauls and Jayden Nesta Sauls; and dear brother of Phillip (Marilynn) Gross, Lena May Bertsch, Penny Sue, Mary Lou (Jake) Pace, Charles William (Bud) Gross, Gene Gross, Jerry Gross, Jimmy Gross, Ruth Ann (David) Vanwinkle, and Mable (Charlie) Bailey. Donald  was a devoted employee of Schneider/Square D Electric and longtime resident of College Corner, Oh. He was an avid gardner and bee keeper.

He was adored by his family and will be deeply missed.

A visitation for Donald will be held at Paul R. Young Funeral Home in Oxford on Tuesday, March 3, 2026 from 11 am until the time of funeral service at 12 pm. Burial at College Corner Cemetery will immediately follow.