Don Heath

1/5/1926 – 13/10/1969

Don, a mining engineer and Darlene Heath migrated from USA to Australia in 1956 with their 3 children, Debbie, Mona Lyn and Danny.

They first went to Port Hedland WA, then were headed to Mt Isa when they heard about the Harts Range garnets and then were told about opal at Coober Pedy.

They arrived at Coober Pedy in 1959 and lived in a caravan near the Opal Café, close to where the old CFS shed stands today. They went mining as well as working for the Miners Store.

From 1963-1965 they ran the Opal Café for which they had bought an icecream making machine. But the café was not a runaway success because supplies were unreliable and tour busses would turn up without warning. So Darlene taught herself to cut opal and in 1965, they built ‘Don’s Opal Mine’ (where room 2 of the Desert Cave now stands) as well as a caravan park nearby. So Don and Darlene were among the pioneers in the tourist industry.

After Don’s death, Darlene returned to USA in 1972.

Information from ‘Pricing Opal’ by Darlene Heath