LaDonna Curtis

LaDonna Faith Evans Curtis (Donna) was reunited with the love of her life, Ken, on April 8. She passed away at the Mt. Graham Regional Medical Center after many health challenges throughout her last years, and through all this, she remained gracious and loving with strong family ties. Donna was born August 24, 1922 in Vallejo, Calif., to Grace and John Evans. She had an older sister, Dorothy, who preceded her in death. She spent her childhood in the Northwest area, finally settling in the area around Vancouver, Wash. Donna graduated from high school in May of 1939, then from a business college. She went to work as a bookkeeper and worked for Washington State Unemployment in 1942. She later worked for Arizona State Unemployment in Safford, until retiring. In July of 1942, she met Kennedy at the USO in Olympia while he was stationed at Fort Lewis, Washington. They were married in Medford, Ore., on Jan. 28, 1943. They were later sealed for time and all eternity Jan. 24, 1947, in the Mesa Arizona Temple. They were blessed with seven children. Donna was a faithful convert to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and accepted numerous callings, including Primary president, Young Womans adviser, Primary, Sunday School, and Mutual teacher for the youth and visiting teacher, along with raising her family. Donna and Kennedy worked in the Genealogy Extraction program, extracting names from historical documents for preservation, which they both dearly loved. Her dream was to serve a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and in 1990, this became a reality. She and Ken were called to serve in the Oakland California Mission for 18 months. Her greatest joy was visits from her family and her travels to the many places that she read about. She was an avid reader and loved mysteries along with historical literature. Trivia and crossword puzzles were no match for her, and she was quick to share the knowledge gleaned from these activities. She was an excellent cook and exceptional seamstress until her stroke in 1991. Donna was always willing to help those in need. Family and friends have always been a strong part of her life. She was a great support to Kennedy in the ranching business and his church responsibilities along with their childrens education, interests and activities. Donna is survived by her seven children: Donna June Bolinger (Bob) of Pima, Sharon Ann Parker (David) of Tucson, Mark Kennedy (LaFaunda) of Sandy, Utah, John Rocky (Iris), David Vern (Sydney) both of Mesa, Stephen Michael (Susan) in Thatcher, and Debra Dicus, (who gave our Mom such loving care during her last four years since Kennedys passing), 30 grandchildren, 49 great-grandchildren and one soon-to-be great-great-son. The family would like to express their appreciation to the staff of Mt. Graham Regional Hospital for their kindnesses and gentle care to Donna. Funeral Services will be conducted Saturday, April 17, 2010, at 11 a.m. in the Thatcher LDS Stake Center. The family will receive friends Friday evening from 6-8 p.m. at the Caldwell Funeral Chapel and one hour prior to services at the Church. Interment will be in the Thatcher Cemetery.