Roy C. McDonald, 82, a former longtime Mayor of the City of West Orange, Texas, died Sunday, August 9, 2026, in Houston, Texas.
Born in Glenmora, Louisiana on June 30, 1944, he was a son of Della Mae (Smith) McDonald and Jesse Clinton McDonald. He was raised in DeQuincy, Louisiana and was a graduate of DeQuincy High School. Following his service in the United States Army, where he worked with missile guidance systems, Roy came to Texas in 1966, where he began a 32-year career at DuPont Sabine River Works. There he was a general mechanic, doing work as a millwright, pipefitter, refrigeration technician and scaffold rigger.
Mr. Roy, as he was known in the community, was elected to the West Orange City Council as an Alderman in 1987, and was elected Mayor in 1995, where he served until May 2021, when he chose not to run for re-election. Mayor McDonald served on the South East Texas Regional Planning Commission (SETRPC), where he was the President (2003-2004); Texas Association of Regional Councils (TARC), serving as President (2005-2006); Texas Municipal League Small City Advisory Committee Chairman; twice appointed by Governor Rick Perry to the South East Texas Regional Review Committee.
During his tenue as Mayor, he oversaw construction of the new City Hall building in 2000 and led the City through the 1997 ice storm, as well as numerous hurricanes over the years. He began the City of West Orange’s annual “Holiday in the Park” festival in 1998, helped initiate the “Mayors’ Breakfast” and in 2021, was named “Person of the Year” by the Record Newspapers.
Mr. Roy was a longtime member of McDonald Memorial Baptist Church where he served as a Deacon, Sunday School teacher and a member of several committees of the church.
Roy was preceded in death by his wife, LaVerne Welch McDonald; his parents, Della and Jesse McDonald; his sisters, Shirley McDonald, Mae Dean Randal; and his brother, Walter McDonald.
He is survived by his daughter, Beverley Satir; son Troy Clinton McDonald and his wife, Rosalinda; grandchildren, Olivia Satir, Micah Satir, Troy Clinton McDonald II, Kyle Conrad McDonald, Megan Francis Veillon and her husband, Daniel.
Visitation for Mr. Roy will begin at 11:00 a.m. Saturday, August 15, 2026, at McDonald Memorial Baptist Church in West Orange followed by the funeral service at 2:00 p.m. Officiating will be Reverend Tommy Anthony and Reverend M.K. Marcantel.
Burial, with military honors, will follow at Orange Forest Lawn Cemetery in West Orange. Pallbearers will be Troy C. McDonald II, Kyle McDonald, Micah Satir, Daniel Veillon, Georgy Jacob and Lendrit Makolli.
For those who wish, memorials may be made to The Gideons International, P.O. Box 445, Orange, Texas 77631-0445 or to McDonald Memorial Baptist Church, 104 Broad Street, Orange, Texas 77630.
