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We honor Donna, a dedicated nurse whose life was marked by compassionate service, clinical excellence, and unwavering devotion to caring for others. Donna graduated with a Diploma in Nursing from St. Aaline Sanatorium in 1956, beginning a remarkable nursing career that would span more than 35 years. In December of that same year, she married her beloved husband, embarking on a beautiful partnership that lasted 57 years. While raising her family and supporting her husband as he completed his Master's degree in Business Management, Donna continued to pursue her calling in nursing and completed her BSN at Walla Walla University School of Nursing.
From 1967 to 1972, Donna and her family answered a higher calling through mission service in Ghana, Africa, where she worked in consulting roles at mission fields associated with Lodi Memorial. Her passion for helping others extended far beyond the walls of the hospital and across international borders.
After settling in Southern California, Donna worked at Riverside General Hospital before finding her professional home at Loma Linda University Medical Center. Throughout her career, she served in a variety of highly specialized areas, including Intensive Care, the Operating Room, Critical Care, Cardiac Intensive Care, and Neuro Intensive Care. These units demanded exceptional knowledge, sound clinical judgment, and unwavering attention to detail, qualities for which Donna was well known and deeply respected.
In 1985, Donna's expertise in critical care earned her selection to a distinguished international medical outreach team. She traveled to North Korea, where she spent a month serving as part of an elite cardiac surgical team performing life-saving heart surgeries. This extraordinary opportunity reflected the trust and confidence others placed in her exceptional nursing abilities.
Donna was known not only for her clinical skill, but also for her commitment to mentoring and teaching new nurses. She believed there were no shortcuts in nursing. Every task was approached with precision, thoroughness, and professionalism. Her high standards helped shape future generations of nurses and left a lasting impact on colleagues and patients alike.
Even after retirement, Donna loved sharing stories from her nursing career. Through her storytelling, she preserved memories of a profession she deeply respected and a calling she faithfully fulfilled.
We recognize and celebrate Donna's legacy of service, excellence, compassion, and dedication. Her healing hands, caring heart, and commitment to nursing touched countless lives and will continue to inspire those who follow in her footsteps.