'He Gave Freely Of His Time:' Donald Bush, 89, Of Middletown

MIDDLETOWN, NJ — Donald P. Bush Jr., who had volunteered with nonprofits and had a 40-year career with Chubb Insurance Group, died Tuesday at his Middletown home after a brief illness. He was 89.

Don was born in Montclair, NJ, and was a 1949 graduate of West Orange High School, where he played football. He attended Wyoming Seminary in Forty Fort, PA, for a year, graduating in 1950, then went on to Dickinson College in Carlisle, PA. Don played football and lacrosse and was a member of Phi Kappa Sigma fraternity at Dickinson, and graduated in 1954.

It also was at Dickinson where he met his beloved wife, Christine. They married in 1956 and raised three sons, James, Steven and John, and lived in Pittsburgh and Huntington, West Virginia, before moving to Middletown in 1965.

Don served in the U.S. Army, where he was in the counterintelligence corps for two years. After serving in the Army he went to work for Chubb Insurance Group for 40 years, where he rose to senior vice president of director of facilities training before retiring in 1997.

He gave freely of his time, volunteering with the Middletown youth basketball league and serving on the boards of Bonnie Brae School in Basking Ridge, Family & Children’s Service in Long Branch and the National Football Foundation’s Essex County Chapter. He was honored for his service to the National Football Foundation in 2008, and received a Lifetime Service Award from Family & Children’s Service in 2017.

"He had so many wonderful qualities," his son Steven said. "He had a remarkable 40-plus year career in business, but never placed that ahead of his family."

"He was a role model for balance and morality," James said.

Don was a huge sports fan and rooted hard for the New York Giants and New York Mets, but he took special pride in the athletic exploits of his sons and his grandchildren in track and field, softball, lacrosse, field hockey, soccer and equestrian competitions, and their theatre pursuits.

He also was a gifted artist, creating the family Christmas card art every year and drawing portraits of beloved pets for family and friends.

"He was always generous and thoughtful, while possessing a great curiosity and interest in all whose lives he touched," his son John said.

Don and Chris loved to play tennis and golf, attend Broadway shows in New York, and they loved to dance. They enjoyed spending time at Navesink Country Club in Middletown, where they have been members for more than 20 years. They also traveled extensively and took in many experiences, from an African safari to kissing the Blarney Stone in Ireland, to trips to Poland and Australia and New Zealand, to riding horses in Yosemite National Park and viewing El Capitan. Don particularly enjoyed trips to ranches out West where he could soak in the experience of being a cowboy and spend lots of time on horseback. Riding horses was one of his favorite activities and something he indulged any chance he could, especially on family trips with his granddaughters.

"He was very active right up to the end of his life (we played 18 holes of golf in October)," Steven said.

Don was predeceased by his brother, Lewis, who died Dec. 25, 2020, and his grandson, Andrew, in November 2020. Don is survived by his wife of 64 years, Christine Crum Bush; three sons, James and his wife Joan Stone of Pittsburgh; Steven and his wife Stephanie of Connecticut; and John of Bayville; his former daughter-in-law, Karen; six granddaughters, Jessica Engstrand, Stephanie Benoit, Kayleigh Bush, Emily Bush, Abigail Bush and Caroline Bush, and four great-grandchildren, Jackson and Austin Engstrand, Riley and Peyton Benoit, and many other extended family members and friends.

Thompson Memorial Home, Red Bank, is in charge of arrangements. Private family services are set for Saturday at the funeral home. A celebration of Don’s life will be held at a later date. In lieu of flowers, donations would be appreciated to the Donald and Christine Bush Community Service Endowed Scholarship Fund at Waynesburg University, Office of Institutional Advancement, 51 West College Street, Waynesburg, PA 15370 or call 724-852-3256, or to Family & Children’s Service, 191 Bath Ave., Long Branch, NJ 07740, or online at www.fcsmonmouth.org.

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