“He had the personality to get along with people. He listened and understood,” said a longtime friend, Bernie Milmoe.
Mr. Ware, 73, died Sunday of heart failure at his Roseville home.
A native of Madera who graduated from the University of California, Berkeley, with a degree in business administration, Mr. Ware took the Roseville job in 1963 and retired in 1986. After an advisory vote by city residents six years ago, the hospital was sold to a local nonprofit group, which then sold it to Sutter Health. In its current form – and in a new building – it is called Sutter Roseville Medical Center.
Mr. Ware’s tenure as the hospital’s top financial administrator coincided with a period of rapid growth for the facility and the community of Roseville. He served twice as interim hospital administrator during those years.
“When you have a hospital that’s owned by the community, everything is politicized,” said Ken Kelley, a retired Roseville Hospital administrator. “Don was under a lot of pressure, but he stood for all the right things.”
Mr. Ware had a 35-year affiliation with the Lions Club, where he was active in foreign-student programs. He was a member of the First Presbyterian Church and Sons in Retirement and a former director of the Roseville Chamber of Commerce.
A memorial service will be at 11 a.m. Wednesday at the church, 515 Sunrise Ave., Roseville.
Survivors include his wife of 51 years, Daisylee; sons, David of Auburn and Tom of Medford, Ore.; a daughter, Carol Kelly of Martinez; a brother, Jack Ware of Georgetown, Texas, and eight grandchildren.
The family requests that any remembrances be sent to the First Presbyterian Church’s family life center building fund.
