His first editorial assignment came at the 3rd Infantry Regiment (The Old Guard), the Army's official ceremonial unit in Washington, D.C. The unit magazine he created at the Old Guard won the Keith L. Ware Award, the Army's top journalism honor for 1971, and the Thomas Jefferson Award, the top Department of Defense prize, the following year. He was an intern in the Washington Bureau of United Press International, which included assignments at the Pentagon and both the Senate and House press galleries.
Following service, Mr. Dunnington worked as creative director and account executive for a Washington public relations agency that specialized in travel industry PR. He then joined the National Alliance of Business (NAB), as public affairs manager of NAB's Vietnam veterans employment program and editor of the "Jobs for Veterans Report." A magazine he created and edited at NAB won the "Gold Quill" award from the International Association of Business Communicators (IABC).
He interviewed many of the nation's top business leaders and senior government officials for magazine articles and documentary films. He also wrote a speech for President Jimmy Carter that was delivered at the White House to a meeting of business leaders. He received a Presidential Citation from President Carter in 1979.
He was a communications consultant and entrepreneur for 10 years. During that time, he was involved in the development of a number of newsletters and magazines and was president of an advertising agency.
In 1989, he became marketing communications manager at K-Tron America, where he developed an in-house advertising and public relations agency. In that capacity, he has published numerous technical articles in major U.S. and international journals. He is responsible for development of all K-Tron advertising in North and South America, in English and Spanish, and produces videos and other internal and external communication materials, in multiple languages, for K-Tron International.
He has continued to work as an independent consultant and recently began development of a quarterly newsletter for the San Juan-Puerto Rico Convention Bureau. He also is consulting with a newsletter publisher who is launching a new consumer publication in December, 1995.
He presently resides in Pitman, NJ, with his wife, Karen. His daughter, Christine, is a Junior at Rutgers University in New Brunswick, NJ. He serves as a member of the marketing and communications committee of the Gloucester County United Way. He is currently enrolled part time in graduate school, studying public relations, at Rowan College in Glassboro, NJ, and also teaches a graduate level class at Rowan in marketing communications.
In Country from December 23, 1969, to just before Thanksgiving 1970.
Involved with the first of the electronic battlefield equipment that became so important in the Gulf War.
NOTE: It was the first digital communication Don had ever seen. He put small boxes in the ground that detected movement. Each one cost what a Volkswagon cost in those days and lasted about 30 days. They had a small explosive charge to destroy them when the battery got too low.