Indianapolis, Indiana – Dona Lee Burke, 90, passed away on October 5, 2024, at home, surrounded by her family. She was a loving mother of five children, who carried her joy for life and her family and friends with her until her passing, she is deeply missed by a lot of special people that were involved in her life.
She was born to parents Claude Van Benthuysen & Vivian Brown on November 4, 1933, in Indianapolis, Indiana.
Dona married her beloved William Richard Burke in October,1953 and they remained devoted until his passing in 2005.
Dona devoted her life to aiding others, starting as a volunteer Candy Striper while training to become a RN. She went on to become a nurse and worked for over thirty years for Community Hospital East, even attaining her RN degree in her older years. At that time, she took care of her family, worked full time and attended nursing school full time. She was a very remarkable woman in all she did. Her life was filled with dedication in everything she did.
Dona was an outgoing, strong, and funny woman, who remained active up until her passing. She loved spending time with family at her cabin on Cataract Lake. A voracious reader, she had walls of books and had read every one, more than once, she enjoyed everything in life from Tom Clancy to J.R.R. Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings. Her tastes in all things were as wide ranging, enjoying music from a similar array of artists. Stevie Ray Vaughn, The Red-Hot Chili Peppers, and Buddy Guy all found a place on her record player.
Her largest passion was her garden though. She would spend hours every day meticulously caring for all the flower and her yard, she planted unusual plants in her yard, even ones that she was told by others that the plant would not grow in Indiana. She had them growing and beautiful. She will be remembered for her love of marigolds, salvia, hostas, large and small.
In addition to her parents, Dona is preceded in death by her beloved husband William, her sisters Betty and Doris.
She is survived by her children Claudia Worden, Todd A. Burke (Patty), John R. Burke, Kitty Minardo (Mike), and Jason E. Burke (Julie); grandchildren Charles Hoagland (Lora), Brian Hoagland (Megan), Travis Roberts (Shawna), Holly Minardo, Mitchell Burke, Danielle Strong (Ron), Joshua Burke, and Crystal Cantrell.
Great Grandchildren Caleb, Johnathon, Elizabeth, Emma, Fallyn, Braxton, Jackson, Anthony, and Aaliyah, and Johnathan
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