Donna Louise Aldrich, Council Grove
Obituary for Donna Louise Aldrich | Sawyer Funeral Home (sawyerchapel.com)
December 28, 1927 ~ May 15, 2021 (age 93)
Donna Louise Bretz was born on December 28, 1927 in Emporia, Kansas and passed into eternity on May 15, 2021 at the Morris County Hospital in Council Grove, Kansas.
Donna was the daughter of Vernon and Ruth Berger Bretz of Council Grove. She was preceded in death by her brother, Lt. Vernon Dean Bretz, and by her sister, Darlene Dixon Dean and nieces Janice and Deana Dixon. She is survived by her sister Eunice Hunter, Council Grove, sister-in-law Mary Lois Aldrich, Tina, Missouri and extended family members.
She was a 1945 graduate of Council Grove High School. She retired from the Rural Electric Cooperative Association after 25 years of service as a clerk.
Donna was united in marriage to Vernon James (Bus) Aldrich of Herington, Kansas on March 23, 1946 by Reverend John J. Clinton in the Methodist parsonage in Council Grove, in a double wedding ceremony with Mary Lois Carr and Douglas Aldrich. The couple made their home in Council Grove for the remainder of their lives.
Donna and Bus were long-time members of the Council Grove Country Club and were avid golfers. One of Donna’s proudest moments in her golfing career was winning the 1970 Women’s Match Play Golf Championship at Council Grove Country Club on August 31, 1970. She had also achieved a hole in one.
Donna played bridge in several ladies bridge clubs. She and Bus also enjoyed playing in couple’s bridge clubs, played pitch and traveled several times to warmer climates for games of chance. Donna also knitted, in addition to crocheting sweaters and blanket keepsakes for family members.
Bus passed away on July 26, 2017. After his death, Donna moved from their home to the Assisted Living in Council Grove.
Donna and Bus were the parents of two sons, David, and his wife Melody, of Overland Park and Jim, and his wife Connie, of Council Grove.
Mrs. Aldrich is survived by four grandchildren, Arika, and her husband Devin Ledom, Ashley and her husband Scot Elston, all of Overland Park; Molly Aldrich of Council Grove and Aric Aldrich, and his fiancé, Michelle Havinga of Coralville, Iowa.
She is also survived by four great-grandchildren, Ethan and Ella Elston and Landry and Lawson Ledom, of Overland Park.
FUNERAL SERVICE
Wednesday
May 19, 2021
1:00 p.m.
Sawyer Funeral Home
137 N. Union Street
Council Grove, KS 66846
INTERMENT FOLLOWING FUNERAL SERVICE
Wednesday
May 19, 2021
Greenwood Cemetery
West Main
Council Grove, KS 66846
Memorials contributions may be made to Donna Aldrich Memorial Fund and may be sent to Sawyer Funeral Home, Box 273, Council Grove, KS 66846.
The memorials will be used for the staffs at Council Grove Assisted Living and Morris County Hospital.
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