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MENTONE – Donald L. Boyer, 94, of Boyer Lake, passed at 4:15 p.m. Sunday, July 12, 2026, at Mason Health and Rehabilitation Center of Warsaw.
Don was born on May 10, 1932, in Claypool, to the late Lawrence and Mary Black Boyer. He graduated from Mentone High School in 1950. On May 3, 1968, he was united in marriage to Carol E. Rathbun in Bourbon, and she survives. In recent years, Don attended South Pleasant Church near Silver Lake.
A lifelong farmer, Don began buying cattle in 1959 and built a career that spanned decades. In his earlier years, he worked as an auctioneer at the Liberty Mills Sale and in Sturgis, Mich. His work took him across the Midwest, from Chicago to Indianapolis and St. Louis to Nebraska, purchasing cattle. In 1998, he established Boyer Cattle Company, which he owned and operated, continuing his work in buying and selling cattle until his health would no longer allow.
He is survived by his wife, Carol Boyer; daughters: Judy Cardwell, of Mentone; Cathy and husband Morris Folk, of Warsaw; and Barb and husband Bill Hardesty, of Warsaw; sons, Dan and wife Kassie Boyer, of Tippecanoe; and Kevin Boyer, of Mentone; son-in-law, Doug Westendorf; stepchildren: Phil and wife Royal Smith, David and wife Amy Smith and Michael and wife Penny Smith; 22 grandchildren; 45 great-grandchildren; and sister, Darlene and husband Burdell Blackburn, of Seymour, Tenn.
Don was preceded in death by his parents; daughter, Beverly Westendorf; daughter-in-law, Kim Boyer; brother, Kenny Boyer and wife Rose; and sister, Phyllis Bennett and husband Gwendol.
The funeral service will be held at 10:30 a.m. Monday, July 20 at King Memorial Home, 101 N. Tucker St., Mentone, with Rev. Michael Smith officiating.
The interment will take place following the service in the Mentone Cemetery, Mentone.
Visitation hours will be held from 2 to 5 p.m. Sunday, July 19 at King Memorial Home, Mentone.
Memorial contributions can be made in his memory to the IWMF (International Waldenstrom’s Macroglobulinemia Foundation), 1449 S. Michigan Ave., suite 13329, Chicago, IL 60605.
Share a memory or send an online condolence at www.hartzlerfuneralservices.com.
