Donald Charles Ellis

Donald Charles Ellis, 95, passed away at his home in Ammon on Wednesday, March 11, 2026, surrounded by the care of his loving family and Solace Home Health and Hospice.

Born on Thanksgiving Day, November 26, 1930, in Grant, Idaho, Donald was the third and last child of Parley Edmond Ellis and Emma Ruth Balmforth Ellis. He grew up in Grant, attending Grant Elementary, graduating from Midway High School, and spending a year at Ricks College in Rexburg. While in college he met Ireta Ruth Cook, and they were married on March 1, 1950, for time and all eternity in the Idaho Falls Temple. The couple began their life together on a small farm in Hamer, Idaho, where their first three children were born. Donald worked for the Union Pacific Railroad and briefly at what is now the INL before the family moved to a farm in Clark, Idaho, where their final three children were born. He took great pride in his land, crops, and livestock, often joking that he worked a job to support his farming habit. A dedicated 4-H leader, he taught his children and others in the community the value of hard work and respect for the land and for life. Later, he joined District 6 of the Idaho Department of Transportation as a desk clerk, pursued further education, and retired after thirty years as an Engineering Technician specializing in highway and structure design.

A lifelong member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Donald served faithfully in many capacities, including as Elders Quorum President, High Priest Group Leader, home teacher, and ward clerk to numerous bishoprics. He was always willing to answer a call to serve. After retirement, he and Ireta moved to Washington, Utah, where they served as service missionaries in the Church cannery and as temple workers in the St. George Temple. They cherished the new friends who became like family and often described those years as the greatest of their lives. In 2019, health concerns brought them back to Ammon, Idaho, where Donald lived until his passing.

He is survived by his sons D. Ray Ellis of Ammon, C. Roy Ellis (Judy) of Rigby, W. Ryan Ellis (Lisa) of Ririe, Ross E. Ellis (Toni) of Idaho Falls, and Robert L. Ellis (Mary) of Ririe; his daughter Rita Joy Ellis of Ammon; and numerous grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and great-great-grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his beloved wife, Ireta Ruth Cook Ellis; his parents; his sister, Velma Terry; his brother, Kenneth Ellis; his daughter-in-law, Karen Annette Ellis; two granddaughters, Whitnie Rae Harris and Misti Dawn Ellis Jacobson; and two grandsons, Richard Bradley Storer and Chad C. Storer.