HADLEY — A man with a “warm and wonderful smile,” Donald A. Heidrich, who owned the Western Beef House, died peacefully on Tuesday morning, March 15, 2016, at his home, surrounded by loving family and friends. He was 89.

At his service, the church was full, said his daughter Donna Reynders. Everyone loved him, she said, and many people remarked that he had had a great smile. She said that he smiled right before he died.

Mr. Heidrich had recently celebrated 65 years of marriage to the love of his life, Emily Galib, whom he married in Albany on Sept. 10, 1950.

Born on Aug. 27, 1926 in Albany, he was the son of the late Frederick and Frances (née Cole) Heidrich. He graduated from Albany High School.

Mr. Heidrich served in the United States Navy during World War II.

It was on board a Navy ship that he first learned the trade of meat cutting. After returning to civilian life, he worked as a meat cutter and then opened his own store, Western Beef House in Albany, which he owned and operated for many years, until his retirement.  

Mr. Heidrich spent most of his life in Albany. He and his wife built a vacation home on the Hudson River, in Hadley, in the early 1950s. They spent five years, in the 1990s, living in Altamont with their daughter before making their vacation home their permanent residence in 1998.

Pastimes that Mr. Heidrich enjoyed included bowling, traveling, and boating on the river. He was an avid New York Yankees fan.

He was an active member of the Hadley Luzerne Lions Club, past member of the Free and Accepted Masons in Albany, past president of the Aurina Club in Albany, and a communicant of St. Mary's Episcopal Church in Lake Luzerne.

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Donald A. Heidrich is survived by his beloved wife, Emily Heidrich; daughter Donna Reynders and her husband, Jeffrey, of Altamont; two granddaughters, Kristen Reynders and her husband, David, and Kathryn Reynders; two great-grandchildren, Jesse James Reynders and Brooklynn Reynders; two sisters-in-law, Jean Heidrich of Latham, and Sally Heidrich of North Creek; and several nieces and nephews.

His parents and his two brothers, Frederick Heidrich and William Heidrich, died before him.

In lieu of flowers, contributions in Don's memory may be directed to St. Mary's Episcopal Church, Post Office Box 211, Lake Luzerne, New York 12846 or to Community Hospice of Saratoga, 179 Lawrence St., Saratoga Springs, New York 12866.

Arrangements were by Brewer Funeral Home in Lake Luzerne.

To express online condolences, please visit www.brewermillerfuneralhomes.com

— Elizabeth Floyd Mair