Donald E Wardle

February 6, 1938 - August 11, 2018

Donald Wardle passed at 84 years old and was a longtime resident of the City of Albany. Donald by trade was an attorney. By heart he was an activist for human rights and a protectionist of the United States Constitution. Many may remember Don who loved politics and staunchly supported the Democratic Party. Don would often tell me the Democrat Party had changed much since he made the decision to become a Democrat as a young man. He would often speak to me with the energy a political campaign can inspire when speaking of the two campaigns he ran for gubernatorial candidates in New Jersey. He would laugh at all the political mayhem these campaigns often do with their mudslinging and breaking news. He was a fighter and most of all he liked to win. I asked why he had never married. He told me his life was politics and fighting the government. And that Don did. He would come to the Albany County Legislature in his frail years, often walking to support the Albany County Nursing Home. He spoke eloquently as one would expect from a seasoned attorney fighting for the less fortunate. Don would come to the legislature where I once sat and argue every vote I was to make that evening during public forum and then wait for me to finish session to drive him home. I use to ask “Don why do you come to the legislature and make my life miserable and then expect me to drive you home?” He replied, “Because it’s politics and we can be friends despite our political divide.” That was Don and he found this most amusing. I want to thank the Hudson Park Nursing and Rehabilitation Center for Don’s care in his latest years of life. His care there was compassionate and skillful. I would also like to thank the Magin & Keegan Funeral Home. They welcomed Don and I to celebrate his life. They generously have given the respect Don deserves in his final legacy. But most of all... I want to thank Don Wardle for being my friend and sharing a fight for human dignity and a love for the independence our great U.S. Constitution provides each person under its protection.