Havasu gym owner turns to faith to overcome life's tragedies

Dan Donaldson’s sister stabbed their mother to death and his brother, Kenny, took his own life with a .44 magnum handgun. Despite these horrific events, Donaldson has found a way to triumph over tragedy.

Dan and wife Christi are the owners of the Titan Gym and Fitness Center, now in its 28th year. In an industry where revenues can fluctuate like tall grass in a high wind, Titan has flourished through good and bad economic times.

“We feel honored that God would trust us with a business we can use as a ministry,” Christi said. “Dan is a strong man of God, which is what I admire the most about him.”

Dan Donaldson’s journey has not been an easy one, yet he has always felt the tug of God. His journey has not been an easy one, yet he has always felt the tug of God. His mother named him after Daniel in the Bible who survived a night in the lion’s den meant as an execution because he prayed to God instead of King Darius.

From 1973-1977, Donaldson served as a weatherman in the Marines at Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii, an assignment he called, “the best job in the Marine Corps.” After an honorable discharge, he went into banking for seven years, starting as a teller at Valley National Bank and finishing as one of the city’s first personal bankers. The 63-year old remembers when the bank got the first ATM ever installed in Havasu. The tellers were told to teach customers how to use it. He told the other tellers, “We’re working ourselves out of a job!”

The oldest of the three children, Dan shared a close relationship with his mother. However, things were different with his father, who seemed jealous of their bond and instigated conflicts between them and other family members, Donaldson says.

Forced to become the family breadwinner at 41 when her husband’s arm was amputated with cancer, Donaldson’s mom supported the family with several waitress gigs, and eventually started Titan in 1991.

In 1994, Donaldson says his father told his sister, DeNay Reylea, that her mom had sold Titan and “the boys are going to divide up the money between them. You’ll get nothing.” DeNay lured her mother to her home where she stabbed her dozens of times with a large folding knife and slit her throat. A few days later, Kenny Donaldson went to DeNay’s house looking for their mother and discovered her body rolled up in a blanket in the garage.

That bloody murder in May 1994, sent shock waves of unbelief throughout Havasu. Neighbors couldn’t wrap their minds around the fact that “a real sweet person” and mother of three could commit such a gruesome homicide against her own mother. Indicted on a single count of first-degree murder, DeNay served 16 years in a mental health facility and is now out. She called Donaldson after her release and asked, “Do you hate me?” He replied, “I forgave you that day.” He says he continues to pray for her.

Kenny took his own life about 18 years later. Dan said his brother’s funeral was one of the largest ever held at Calvary Baptist Church, and estimated that over 500 people came to pay their respects to a man who “made friends easily and could party with anyone.”

At the wake, Donaldson spoke of his brother’s suicide. “The hardest thing for people to do is to bend the knee and submit to God. If Kenny’s actions help bring one guy to Christ, his sacrifice was worth it.”

Later, a man approached Dan and said, “I’m that guy. I’m calling my wife. I want to start going to church.”

Although his mother sold Titan before her death, Donaldson continued to run the fitness center for two years without pay, while Christi supported them with her job. They were able to use those two years of back pay for the down payment to buy back the gym.

One day, he noticed there were only two people working out. He prayed for guidance. If business didn’t pick up, he’d have to close the gym. He got the idea to put a cross on the wall. When he went to the Christian bookstore to buy the cross, the owner said he had been praying for Titan. He mounted the cross near the front door where it hangs to this day. People came out of nowhere, membership increased, and the gym took off. Donaldson calls this a “God story.”

Another God story happened the month before the Great Recession. An excessive amount of payments flowed into the business that didn’t match the attendance of members or visitors. That unexpected, unexplained revenue carried the company through the next few months when the recession hit the hardest.

A significant turning point for Dan and Christi occurred while they were members of Saint Michael’s United Methodist Church. When attending an Alpha course for the first time in the Hualapai Mountains, they were jolted by a spiritual mountain top experience that exceeded being on the top of a mountain. It changed their lives.

Donaldson called the Alpha course “Christianity 101.” The class introduces the basics of the Christian faith through a series of talks and discussions that answer questions about the meaning of life. Alpha is a course about relationships, and it taught them how to have a relationship with Jesus. Alpha is open to all, meets weekly for nine weeks, and is free.

Dan and Christi Donaldson are now the facilitators of the Alpha course at Calvary Baptist Church.

According to Calvary’s Lead Pastor Chad Garrison, Dan is a volunteer pastor who loves God, loves people and loves to help them get healed. “He’s an encourager and a great picture of how much God can redeem anyone’s life who has gone through as much pain as he has.”

Jodie Mitchell, who started Celebrate Recovery at Saint Michael’s said, “Dan has an amazing passion for Christ that has brought him through. He has a heart for helping people to keep their bodies healthy and strong.”

Coleen Collins joined the gym in 1991, the first year it opened, and continues to be a member. “I’ve stayed because it’s like home to me. Staff and members are like family,” she explained. “I will always remember Dan’s incredible faith and strength when his family went through things no family should have to endure.” She noted that Donaldson is a compassionate leader with a great sense of humor who quotes lines from movies and imitates characters, making her laugh every time she’s around him.

Donaldson is explicit about the reason for the success of Titan and how he’s been able to cope with his family’s tragedies. “It’s not about me. It’s about God. He loves his people. It’s amazing what God has done. I’ve seen ‘dead’ people receive life, the blind see, the dumb speak and the deaf hear. God is real, and he has a plan for all of us. He’s here for you.”

Looking back on the afflictions he has faced, he observed, “What the devil meant for bad, God has used for his glory.”