Donna Mae Lorge, age 67, of Bear Creek passed away Saturday, February 1, 2020 at St. Joseph Residence, New London, after a courageous battle with cancer.
Donna was born on September 8, 1952 in Iola to George and Christine (Trice) Stilen and graduated from Clintonville High School in 1970. Donna was united in marriage on June 27, 1970 to Michael L. Lorge at St. Mary’s Catholic Church, Bear Creek. After starting a family and working for a few years, she went back to school to earn her associate’s degree. From there she worked at GLK Foods in various administrative roles for “18 happy years” before retiring in 2016. Donna cherished family time more than anything else. Traveling and shopping with her husband, visiting with her grandchildren and laughing with her sisters brought Donna happiness. She looked forward to anything that brought her family together. Donna took her vacations close to home often with Mike, and she loved her trips to New York and Washington D.C. She shared her love of reading with her children and grandchildren. Donna was a longtime member of St. Mary’s Catholic Church and enjoyed volunteering as an election worker in her community. Those who were lucky enough to know Donna will remember her as a good listener, a caring friend and a loving wife, mother and grandmother.
Survivors include her husband of 49 years, Mike; and four daughters: Tracy (Mark) Pensis of Clintonville, Jennifer “Ginger” Lorge of Clintonville, Sara (Jason) Kruschke of Appleton, and Susan (Tim) Doherty of Winona, MN. There are nine grandchildren: Jessica Pensis, Kyle Pensis, Ryan Krieser, Kirk Schultz, James Kruschke, Gwen Kruschke, Kate Kruschke, Eva Doherty, and Chloe Doherty. Donna is also survived by her father, George Stilen and her mother-in-law, Marian Lorge, both of Clintonville. There are nine siblings: Barbara (Greg) Moldenhauer of New London, Ken (Mary) Stilen of Cornell, Betty (Tim) Miller of Bear Creek, Cindy (John) Nassen of Iola, Rick Stilen of Deerbrook, Bev (Scott) Zempel of Clintonville, Dave (Mary) Stilen of Deerbrook, Jeff Stilen of Deerbrook, Jane (Pat) Bessette of Bear Creek. She is further survived by in-laws: Rhonda Stilen of Bogalusa, LA; Patricia (Tom) Ransom of Clintonville, Stephen (Sheryl) Lorge of Clintonville, Kathy (Brian) Lawson of Bear Creek, and Kevin Lorge of Bear Creek; many nieces, nephews, other relatives and friends. Donna was preceded in death by her mother Christine Stilen; her father-in-law Victor Lorge; brother Don Stilen; sister Jill Stilen; nephew AJ Miller; niece Dawn Stilen-Barches; and stepmother Diane Stilen.
Mass of Christian Burial will be held on Wednesday, February 5th at 10:30 a.m. at St. Mary’s Catholic Church, Bear Creek. Fr. Timothy Shillcox, O. Praem will officiate and burial will follow in the parish cemetery. Visitation will be held on Tuesday from 4:00 – 7:00 p.m. at Beil-Didier Funeral Home, Clintonville, and on Wednesday from 9:30 a.m. until time of mass at the church.
The family wishes to thank the ThedaCare Oncology team, especially Dr. William Conkright, for the compassionate care provided to Donna. We also wish to thank the nurses and staff at St. Joseph Residence and Heartland Hospice for their love and support.
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