Obituary of Don Michael Larris

Don (“Donald”) Larris passed away at his home in Aurora, Colorado, on March 20, 2026, at the age of 79, with his wife and daughter by his side.

Don was born on July 5, 1946, to Martha (Skolnick) Larris and Herman Larris in Queens, NY. He grew up in Westbury, NY, with his older brother, Alan, and his younger sister, Annie. He received his B.S. in Industrial and Labor Relations from Cornell University in 1968 and received his M.B.A. from New York University in 1970.

Don proudly served in the Air National Guard from 1968. He initially was stationed in Biloxi, MS, where he studied engineering, earning a commendation for high marks in a radio repair course. He continued his service through 1974.

Throughout his life, Don loved soccer – from playing in middle school, high school, and college to later coaching his son's and daughter’s childhood soccer teams. Don enjoyed gardening, playing (low-stakes) poker, watching women’s UConn basketball, and, most of all, taking care of his and everyone else’s cats.

Don had an infectious excitement for life and loved talking to any and all people as much as he could. He never met anyone who didn’t quickly become his “new friend,” and he cultivated his friendships from across the country and different stages of his life, some friendships lasting more than 60 years.

While Don spent almost his entire life in the tri-state area, after more than 45 years in New Jersey, Don and his wife, Diane, picked up and moved to Colorado at the age of 78 to be closer to his daughter and her growing family. Don got to meet his first grandson, Sebastian, on September 21, 2025.

Don is survived by his wife Diane (nee Greenspan), his son Brian, his daughter Lindsay and her husband Jeremy, his grandson Sebastian, his brother Alan and his wife Pennie, and his sister Annie (Fox) and her husband David, and his beloved cats Baxter and Katrina.

A memorial service for Don will be held on March 24, 2026, at 2 pm at Feldman Mortuary.  While the family requests immediate family only for the in-person service, we invite all who knew and loved Don to join us virtually via livestream at Feldman Mortuary's YouTube channel.

The family will be holding a celebration of life for Don in May in the Denver area. Please contact his daughter, Lindsay, at Lindsay.larris@gmail.com for more information.

In lieu of flowers, please help us celebrate Don’s love of cats by making a memorial contribution to Foothills Animal Shelter.