Donna Jean Plante

Donna Plante, Church Archivist and Senior Traveler

Donna Sutherland Plante passed away April 26th at Sunrise of Abington. She was born July 8, 1928, in Montreal, Canada to parents George Wildgoose Sutherland and Kathleen Hurley. Her father was a store keeper with Canadian National Steamships, and due to the nature of his job they moved between Montreal and Halifax, N.S. a number of times before finally settling in Montreal when she was about ten.

Donna was an excellent student, but her college plans were disrupted when her father died in 1942. Instead, she became an insurance clerk, first with the Sun Life of Canada and later with Prudential of Canada. Every winter, she and her friends rented a ski house in the Laurentians and traveled out by a special ski train every weekend. During one of those trips, she met Joe Plante, who was living in Staten Island, NY after serving in the army in Korea. They were married on July 25, 1959 in Notre Dame Cathedral in Montreal. Afterwards, they lived on Staten Island, and Donna worked for Prudential in Manhattan until the birth of daughter Kathleen, followed by son David. The family moved to Chester, NJ in 1965 and then to Pennsylvania in 1968, settling in Downingtown. Together Donna and Joe enjoyed gardening, travel, skiing, and time with friends and family.

After Joe died in 1998, Donna moved to Elkins Park to be nearer her children. She built a new life for herself, joining St Paul’s Church in Elkins Park, where she served as archivist for some years and made many friends. She also enjoyed leading tours of St. Paul’s, with a highlight being the famous Tiffany stained glass windows. She was an enthusiastic member of her book club.

Donna was very proud of her Scottish heritage, even naming her beloved cat Stóirín, Gaelic for “little darling”. In her later years, she fulfilled her dream of travelling to Scotland, first with her sister, and then with her daughter, son-in-law, and his parents. She enjoyed five trips to Scotland, one to Ireland, one to British Columbia, and three to Nova Scotia. She celebrated her 90th birthday with 16 family members in Drumnadrochit, Scotland and her 94th birthday at another family reunion in Nova Scotia.

In addition to Joe, she was predeceased by sister Margaret. She is survived by daughter Kathleen (Dave Clark), son David (Claire Owen), sister-in-law Muriel Plante, cousin Val Jones, and nieces and nephews Joanne Terauchi (Lorne), Donna McGuigan (James Dalrymple), Sheila Masanotti (John), Martin Plante (Elisa), and Brian Plante (Kathy).

A memorial service will be held at Saint Paul’s Episcopal Church, 7809 Old York Road, Elkins Park, PA 19027 at 2:00 on Thursday May 30, with a Repast at the adjacent Jay Cook Hall immediately following the service.

In lieu of flowers donations can be made to:

Animal Care Sanctuary

PO BOX A

East Smithfield, PA 18817

570-596-2200

https: //animalcaresanctuary.org/donate/