Frank Lee Eaton

Frank Lee Eaton, 93, of Plano, Texas, passed away on December 20, 2025. Born in Wythe County, Virginia, Frank was the son of the late Charlie Cook Eaton and Elizabeth Stafford Eaton.

He grew up in Staffordsville Virginia, graduating from Pearisburg High School in 1950, where he developed a lifelong love for the outdoors, sports, and the beauty of his home state. He began his Christian faith in a small chapel next to his childhood home named Sheffey Memorial.

Frank, a proud veteran, joined the U.S. Air Force after high school when college was not an option. He served in the Korean War, specializing in radar and electronics. While stationed in Tampa, Florida, he met his wife, Dolores. The two were married in 1955 and shared fifty-six wonderful years together until her passing.

After completing his four-year term in the Air Force, Frank, his wife, and their newborn son started their journey back to Virginia. Frank’s plan was to enroll in college now that he had the resources. It was during this trip back, he received a job offer from IBM, based on his military training. With a new family to support, he accepted the offer. And what a great decision it proved to be.

Frank began his IBM career when the company was primarily known for its adding machines, tabulators, and typewriters. However, starting in 1959, he spent three years in intensive IBM training. This preparation was for the launch of the IBM 360 Mainframe computer; a product considered the most significant launch in business history.

The global demand for these machines was huge. For the Apollo 11 moon mission, NASA utilized nine 360 machines to operate the command centers. The moonwalk proved to be the greatest marketing gift in corporate history as the company started selling over a thousand machines per month.

Frank was honored to have the responsibility of installing and servicing these new machines at some of America’s most storied companies, including General Motors, US Steel, and Dow Chemical. The strong demand continued to rise through the 1970’s and 1980’s along with Frank’s career.

One of his promotions required that he move his family to the Dallas, TX area where he remained until his passing. Frank retired after 38 years of employment with IBM and then spent another 10 years as a private consultant with the Technical Systems Group.

Frank was a good athlete in high school. While stationed in Florida, he took up the game of golf and became an avid golfer teaching his sons and grandchildren the game. In retirement he bought a house in a golf community located along the fairway and became a daily fixture on the course. At his club he was a proud Super Senior Champion and a gloating Grandpa when his grandson qualified for the PGA Tour right after college.

Following the passing of his wife, Frank met the second love of his life Donna Lou Crutcher. They shared a life of travel, time with family and simply enjoyed being together.

Frank passed away peacefully, surrounded by his loving family.

He will be remembered as a family man with an analytical mind. In retirement and old age, he became a gentle soul that everybody wanted to be around. People loved hearing the stories he told about what computing was like in the 1960s. For those who knew Frank, he will be sorely missed but never forgotten.

He is survived by his wife, Donna Lou Crutcher; children, Ronnie (Barbara), John(Holly), Scott (Kim), and Kelly Eaton Scott; his brothers, Tommy (Shirl) and Tobie (Annis); and seven grandchildren, Carter, Chandler, Sam, Murphy, Max, Will and Austen. He was preceded in death by his beloved wife, Dolores, and his brothers Wylie, Roland, Pat, and Freddie.

A memorial service will be held at 10:00 a.m., Thursday, January 8, 2026, at Allen Family Funeral Options, Plano, Texas 75023. A reception will follow. To view service via webcast: https://webcast.funeralvue.com/events/viewer/118775

The date and time have not yet been set but Frank will be laid to rest with military honors in a private graveside service at the Dallas/Ft Worth National Cemetery, Dallas, Texas.