Obituary: Donald Lee Cone

Donald Lee Cone, Baptist pastor and chaplain, died June 8. He was 85. He was born Oct. 27, 1934, to Charlie and Delia Vire Cone. He graduated from Hardin-Simmons University and Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. He was pastor of Broadview Baptist Church in Abilene, Cottage Grove Baptist Church in Houston and Southeast Baptist Church in South Milwaukee, Wisc. He worked 23 years as a prison chaplain at Stateville and Joliet Correctional Centers near Chicago. At age 17, he enlisted in the Texas National Guard and served in the field artillery branch. After seminary, he served as a chaplain in the Texas and Wisconsin National Guard and the U.S. Army Reserve. He retired as a lieutenant colonel in 1989 after 36 years of service. When he retired from prison chaplaincy, he and his wife moved to Flower Mound to be near children and grandchildren, and they became actively involved in the ministries of Lakeland Baptist Church in Lewisville. He volunteered as a Flower Mound police chaplain and was recognized as Chaplain of the Year in 2014. He also volunteered at Christian Community Action in Lewisville, where he ministered both to staff and clients. He also was a volunteer with Bill Glass and Kairos prison ministries. He is best known for his Cross Caps ministry. To encourage others to share their faith publicly, he distributed more than 20,000 custom baseball caps with crosses to anyone he encountered. He is survived by his wife of almost 58 years, Betty Lee Evans Cone of Galena Park; daughter Cindy Cone Jones and her husband Gary of Grapevine; son Steve Cone and his wife Joanna of Frisco; son Michael Cone and his wife Michele of Carrollton; son Dave Cone and his wife Stephanie of The Colony; 11 grandchildren and his younger brother Dale Cone. As a memorial, donations can be made in his honor to Christian Community Action, 200 S. Mill Street, Lewisville, TX 75057 or by going to https://ccahelps.org/donations/generaldonation/.