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Don C. Guillot , Age: 76
December 04, 1946 - February 03, 2023
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Don C. Guillot, 76, of Olympia, Washington, passed away on February 3, 2023,
after a short illness precipitated by chronic illnesses. Don was born to Curt John
Guillot and Dorothy Rae (Busby) Guillot on December 4, 1946. He was raised in
the small town of West Orange, Texas.
 
After school, he joined the U.S. Army. After completion of basic training in Fort
Polk, Louisiana, he served in Korea on the 38 th Parallel, which divided North and
South Korea after World War II. He was assigned patrol duty to ensure that North
Korea military troops did not cross the 38 th Parallel into South Korea.
 
After an Honorable Discharge from the U.S. Army Don returned to his hometown
and got a job with Gulf States Utilities as a lineman helper. He worked his way up
to a journeyman lineman in electrical power distribution. Don became active in an
organizing effort to unionize the employees of the Gulf States Utilities, where the
employees voted for an IBEW bargaining unit. Don eventually worked as a
Construction Lineman in Wisconsin before transferring to Washington State as a
Journeyman Lineman for Avista Utilities (formerly Washington Water Power).
 
Don continued his interest in IBEW union matters and was appointed Shop
Steward and elected to serve on IBEW Local Union 77 Executive Board. He
continued his interest in the collective bargaining for the members of IBEW Local
7 to improve wages, hours of work, conditions of employment, and better
benefits for the IBEW members.
 
Don was genuinely interested in working on behalf of the IBEW members because
Don grew up in an IBEW family where his father was an IBEW Journeyman
Lineman in the construction of power distribution. He also served as elected
President of IBEW Local Union 390 located in Port Arthur, Texas.
 
Don Guillot continued to be a strong advocate of IBEW Local Union 77, which had
over 7,000 members; and he was later appointed Assistant Business Manager. He
continued to serve the IBEW Local 77 for many years and was elected to three
terms as Business Manager/Financial Secretary, his position at retirement in 2013.
 
Don was very compassionate in his responsibility to negotiate with NECA
electrical contractors for IBEW bargaining units in the states of Washington and

Idaho. He had the responsibility to represent IBEW Local Union 77 members with

grievances filed under the terms of the working agreements, and he made a
conscientious effort to reach a workable settlement with all parties involved. Don
was very popular with the IBEW Local 77 union members, and he worked hard to
represent their best interests. He was friendly and had a lot of humor to go with

his personality.

Don’s other duties as Business Manager/Finances included lobbying with both
federal and state officials with regard to legislative matters to improve the lives of

his union members.

During Don’s working career as IBEW Union Representative he met and married
Debbie, his wife of over 37 years. Debbie was very supportive of Don’s union
career and during Don’s critical illnesses. They loved each other very much, and
Don always told everybody how wonderful Debbie was to be his wife. During
their marriage, Don and Debbie spent many hours traveling in their motorhome,

cruising in their boat, and riding their motorcycle.

Don loved spending hours in his shop doing woodworking, painting, fixing things,
and modifying everything; visiting with friends and family; fishing; playing with
their dogs; and helping anyone he could, whether he knew them or not.
Don was preceded in death by his parents, sister Virginia Miller and his brother-
in-law Hubbard Miller, sister-in-law Grace Guillot, and numerous aunts and
uncles. He is survived by his wife Debbie, his brother Roland, sisters- and

brothers-in-law, numerous nieces and nephews, and many friends.

A Celebration of Life for Don will be held at a later date and will be announced on

this site and via facebook.


 

FAMILY MEMORIES
 
Kelly Guillot - Uncle Don, Thank you for your continued love and guidance. You
are a man of the people, a man of his word. Your love for your family, dogs, and
friends will never be forgotten. I will never forget our conversations and will

forever remember your spirit and sense of humor. - Rest Easy, Uncle Don.

Jeff Miller - My Uncle Don Guillot was an open book to everyone. Even the
random person at the Fred Meyer got the same information he shared around the
dinner table with family and friends. Since he was always trying to make
memories, everyone has a favorite “Don story.” Which brings me to the most
treasured gift he ever gave me, an appreciation for the value of storytelling.
Not how to tell a story, but the value of the concept of storytelling. An anecdote
gives framework and context for lessons; and is a timeless method of passing
down wisdom to future generations. When Don told a story, the knowledge he
was trying to communicate became tangible, therefore, memorable. Storytelling
is a fundamental reason why Don was so loved and so successful. I believe Uncle
Don saw a talent for telling a story in me at a young age and nurtured it
throughout my life. I believe this because I could sense his pride when I used my
power for good. Storytelling is the only thing that truly unites all of us; and
embracing that value has been my competitive advantage in life, thanks to my

Uncle Don.

Stephen Guillot - Don was the quintessential Uncle that every niece and nephew
could ever ask for.  He loved them as if they were his own.  He was a mentor and

role model for them by living an amazing and accomplished life. We miss him.

Judy Pier - I loved Don’s phone calls, jokes, and love of good food! He was a
loving, caring, larger-than-life man with a huge heart. Debra is lucky to have had
such a good husband! He is definitely one in a million, and he will be missed by
everyone who had the good fortune of knowing him. I love you, Don; and I will

miss you!

Amy Powell - Our family is so saddened by the loss of our Uncle Don. He had the
biggest heart and was truly one to help anyone, anytime. As his niece, I am
grateful for so many memories; but one of my most treasured is dancing the
second half of the father-daughter dance with him at my wedding 25 years ago.
Our entire family will hold onto many memories made over the years, especially
our time living in the same town, where my children got to experience time spent
with Uncle Don. We are also grateful he will live on through the tangible items he
lovingly made in his beloved shop, including the toybox that sits in our living

room, outgrown by my children and now well-used by his great-nephews.

Thomas Ross - My Uncle Don Guillot once told me he went to high school with
Janis Joplin, but added “Of course, we didn’t hang out, cuz they was hippies and
we was rednecks.” He may have been a teller of tall tales, but the only part of that
story I don’t believe is that he ever met anybody who wasn’t charmed by him. In
the 36 years I knew him, he was a fast friend to everyone who crossed his path,
no matter how briefly – a loud-laughing, back-slapping big talker with more than a
twinkle of well-meant mischief in his eye. He made you feel like you were in on
every joke, whether you were a longtime comrade, a complete stranger, or lucky

enough to call him Uncle Don.

David Ross - Uncle Don was generous, caring, and had a contagious personality.
He was a giver, a teacher, and a world class (but ultimately well-meaning) trash
talker. I loved whenever he was around. Whether he was teaching me how to
sight in my BB gun, showing me how to set up a fishing rig, or poking fun at me for
being too scared to pick up a crab, it was always clear that he was fully present,

took interest in my hobbies, and cared deeply about me.

David Pier - Don had a HUGE personality. He was passionate, genuine, and kind.

He embraced life and made it better for all of us. Nothing but great memories.

Janet Pier - Don, your laugh was often and memorable! Your love and respect for

Debbie was always present! Thank you for your kindness and fun memories!

Peggy and Mike Blowers
Mike - Uncle Don: The proper way to eat boudin, (something I’d never heard of) –
steamed hot, pork and beans, soda crackers. My introduction to Cajun; pork, guts,
rice, and cayenne pepper. Crawfish etouffee, (his favorite) – thick spicy gravy,
rice. Happy, happy happy.
Shrimp boil, (new to all of us) – spicy boiled shrimp, Uncle Don’s hot sauce. I have
cooked shrimp for literally hundreds of people from Idaho to California. They all
want to know, as they are shoveling shrimp, “How did you learn to make that?”
And then I tell them about my Uncle Don, the Cajun from Texas. I learned the
spirit of the shrimp boil from him. No one is unhappy at a shrimp boil.
The House of Ho (sadly no more) – A yearly pilgrimage for us. Don would take me
along to his business meeting in Seattle, and then we would go to this dim sum
restaurant. When we walked in, they knew him. It was like he was running for
governor. The little cart would come around, Don would start pointing, and the
little plates would start piling up on the table. Stuff you had never seen in your
life, all delicious. An outing with Don was always an experience, one that would
stay with you. It was at The House of Ho that I first heard him say, “Eat til you
win!” Uncle Don’s version of Carpe Diem, and words to live by.
 
Christmas – Don picked up on the Pier families’ tradition of all-out Christmas and
jumped in with both feet. At Christmas Eve, the tradition was seafood. Don would
show up in Spokane with crab, clams, oysters, and shrimp for everybody and then
show you what to do with it. He might also show up dressed like cousin Eddie
from Christmas Vacation, (a movie we had watched as a group and laughed until
we hurt), complete with dickey, leisure suit, and white shoes. He might also show
up with a crawfish head hat and fake buck teeth. One year he delivered a perfect
leg lamp replica that is still displayed to this day. The collective Christmas
memories of the Blowers, Pier, Read, Carlson, Ross and Powell families, will

always have a fond memory of Uncle Buck.

Fishing with Don – He was very fond of going on fishing trips, and he paid zero
attention to the actual planning of said trips. After having several trips inflicted on
me, it was a relief to find that on arrival, there was in fact water in the target,
river, reservoir, lake, or ocean, because little else would follow any sort of script.
Do not think me bitter - I’m not. Trips with Don are some of my fondest
memories. Fish or no fish, good luck or none, we had real fun. Don’s stories of his
childhood, the Army, Korea, work - it was all special. Food on these adventures
was worth the trip. He would always find the best burger place, the place with
real ice cream shakes, the pizza place with, I am not kidding, one inch of
pepperoni on top, BBQ, taco trucks, and Cajun. But the best part of these trips
was invariably the chance encounters that we ran into. The four-inch hole in the
outside hotel wall along the Columbia, ripped with a shotgun blast, I suppose
taking care of the offending woodpecker. The half inch of dead flies on the
window sill at the motel at Neah Bay. I guess window screens were out of the
question. The hole in the floor in the same motel, the one that you sunk up to
your ankle in, tastefully concealed with a dirty, stained, rug; the collection of yard
sale pots and pans in the deluxe kitchen, all burned black, non-stick coating
flaking off; the commercial fishing boat at the dock covered with moss and ferns,
listing badly, and right next to it another one sunk to the bottom still tied to the
dock. A road trip with Uncle Buck was a special thing. We laughed until we hurt,

and we laughed every time we remembered the moment.

Don was everyone’s friend. He would talk to anyone, he would always have his
latest joke ready to lay on them; but it was real, and people knew that. He was

unique.

And so to end, a Don-ism, one of my favorites. We were riding in his truck,
probably going to a hardware store, to stare at stuff he would eventually find a
need for, and tell jokes to people who were complete strangers. In the middle of
the road was a very squashed, very dead possum. He turned his head, and with
the skill of a great Vaudeville comedian he dead panned, “Get up, possum, you
ain’t foolin’ anyone.” I laughed so hard I could not breathe.
And one more thing. Anytime I want to remember my brother-in-law Don, I will
picture him as a kid, sitting on his roof in Texas during a flood, .22 rifle across his
lap ready to shoot the snakes as they came out of the swamp… with a big smile on

his face.

Gordon and Patti Carlson
Gordon - Don wasn't just a brother-in-law, he was my special friend. He was
always quick to help others and share a good laugh. I will always love and miss

him.

Gordy Carlson and Rose Helens Hart - Don possessed a special blend of
intelligence, humor, and genuine warmth that cannot be replaced. His energy
filled any room he entered, but his engaging personality made each person feel
like they were the most important one there. He fought for his country, his

colleagues, and his family; and he will be greatly missed.

Alice Phillips, Business Manager, IBEW Local 483: Don was a strong leader and
business manager and fearless IBEW member a steadfast friend. He was a brother
who would fiercely defend his family. He will be missed but never forgotten.

 

Condolences

Jackson Powell May 16, 2023

Uncle Don Meridian , Idaho

Thank you for everything you taught me and Mya. You were a funny and high spirited man. We had some amazing memories when we were down in Olympia. You were a fighter more then anything. May you rest in peace forever.


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