Beloved Coach Traylor Passes
By Sherri Blevins & Donny Traylor
Mr. Terry Don Traylor, age 84, of Rainsville, passed away October 15, 2020. Mr. Traylor served many years as an educator and basketball coach in Dekalb County. He is survived by his daughter Terry and her husband Benji Wilmon, daughter Sherry and her husband Mike Cochran, and son Donny and his wife Brandy Traylor and several grandchildren and other relatives. His son Donny wrote a fitting tribute to his father on a Facebook post. His words are written below.
This week I had to say goodbye to a wonderful dad, granddad, husband, son, friend, coach, teacher, and just a great man.
Even though I knew his death was coming, there’s no way to prepare for the shock and heartbreak that the death of a loved one leaves behind. While I hope that no one has to experience such a life-altering loss, the truth is we all will.
Death is a part of life, and once it happens to someone you love so dearly and admire, your existence is changed forever.
I know the pain of losing my dad will never leave me. I imagine that the hurt will ease with time as I process and get through it, but I will never get over it. How can I? How can you get over losing someone who has been there since before you even knew you existed?
I take comfort in how I know my dad lived his life and the positive influence he had on so many lives through his years of teaching and coaching.
I’m thankful for the childhood he and my mom provided for my sisters and me and the involvement he had in our lives all the way up to his passing last week.
Most kids think they have a great dad, and there are many great dads out there, but my sisters and I knew we had a great dad because everyone told us we did.
He gave us the greatest gift a parent can give a child, and that is unconditional love. There was never a minute that my sisters and I had to question our parents’ love for us, and I’m truly grateful for that.
Is the measure of a man how much money he has? How many possessions he has? Or is it the professional success he has over the years?
I don’t believe it’s any of those. The true measure of a man is how much love he gives; how selflessly he shares whatever he can to help others; and how he lifts others with a kind word, a joke, or a compliment to make that person feel better.
By that measure, my dad was immeasurable.
I lost my dad, but I’m doing my best to remain grateful and comforted in knowing how loved my dad was and how he positively affected so many lives throughout the years.
My dad was a wonderful man, and to me, he was more than a dad; he was my friend and my hero. I always admired my dad and had such great respect for him because of how he lived his life and the legacy he leaves behind, and these words cannot describe how much he meant to me.
Finally, I’m thankful for the way my dad loved my mom and the 64 years they spent as husband and wife; through sickness and health, good times and bad times, happy times and sad times, he never wavered on his true love for my mom, his kids, and grandkids.
Although I hurt and miss them dearly already, I take comfort in knowing that they are together again with no pain, no tears, and no sorrow. I will live the rest of my life trying to be a better father, husband, friend, and a better person in honor of my dad and mom.
Thank you, mom, and dad for the love and guidance throughout the years. RIP Don and Helen Traylor, I will always love you and miss you until this heart of mine stops beating.
Your son,
Donny
Beloved Coach Traylor Passes