Donna Marie Erickson

August 11, 1931 – February 18, 2016

Donna Marie Erickson, 84, died suddenly early Thursday morning Feb. 18, 2016 at Samaritan Hospital in Moses Lake. Donna was born Aug. 11, 1931 to Francis and Ella Kitsch in Webster, N.D. Donna was raised on the Kitsch family farm in Webster, N.D. and graduated from Starkweather High in 1949.

Following high school Donna attended Saint Mary’s Nursing School from 1951-1952 and graduated as a registered nurse and worked in a doctor’s office in Devils Lake. Donna met the love of her life Robert “Bob” L. Erickson on a blind date on Aug. 24, 1954 which went well as they were engaged Nov. 29, 1954. They wed Oct. 1, 1956 after Bob returned from Army deployment in Europe. In 1959 Donna and Bob moved to a 112-acre farm in Block 40 near Moses Lake where they had six children, Lee, Paul, Chris, Wade, Robin and Elizabeth. In addition to being a small business owner, Donna stayed busy raising her brood and attending as many school events as possible. It was always a thrill to look up into the stands and see her proud face looking on.

Donna loved and missed her Kitsch family in North Dakota. When the Erickson children were young Donna and Bob made an annual visit back home to Webster and Devils Lake a priority, saving money by making sandwiches for the two-day train ride, only rarely splurging for breakfast in the dining car. Donna loved birds of all kinds and although she hated the color yellow, her favorite was the American goldfinch. Next to her kitchen window sits a copy of the Peterson Field Guide for birds. She would spend hours watching her birds in the feeders she generously kept full. In recent years, a pair of great horned owls took up residence in her yard and raised several broods there much to her delight. Donna had her hands full with six busy children but always managed to make each feel the most precious of the bunch. Her favorite remedy for a bored, fussy or unhappy child was to tell them to “run around the outside of the house, eat a banana, drink some milk or take a bath.” Her fourteen grandchildren learned the same. One of her greatest gifts to her children and grandchildren was the love of being outside creating one’s own adventure.

Friends of her children were welcome in her home and many adopted her as their second mom. On a moment’s notice she would find herself with a house full of hunters whom she fed and found places to sleep. Repeat guests learned to wait until all were seated and grace was said before enjoying her amazing home cooking. Donna also had a reputation for overestimating her control of fire. On more than one occasion her burn pile would get out of hand and Grant County Fire Protection District Five would show to douse the flames. After nearly burning down the barn she was given her totem name “The Burning Woman” by the Barrels of Flame Rod & Gun Club Members.

Her first love was the Lord. She was a devout Catholic and rarely missed Mass and passed on her faith to her family. One Sunday on her way home from Mass, Donna lost control of her van on an icy country road, wrapping the van around a tree, totaling the van and spilling her groceries on the road. Her priest assured her later that God wouldn’t mind her missing Mass for her own safety. She was a longtime Perpetual Adoration and Soup Kitchen volunteer at Our Lady of Fatima Catholic Church in Moses Lake where, as at home, she put others before herself. Donna was well loved and will be dearly missed. Those who knew her agree that the world is a better place because she was in it. As well as her above mentioned children she is survived by grandchildren Nicole, Kalin, Sidney, Keaton, Calloway, Morgan, Jack, Molly, Kees, Christopher, Isabella, Taylor, Ashley and Morgan Sams. She is also survived by brothers Dennis and Mark Kitsch and sister Anita Adahl and is preceeded in death by her brothers Jim, Jack, sister Lois Ann, parents Francis and Ella Kitsch and husband Bob.

A Holy Rosary will be prayed at 10:30 a.m. on Tuesday, March 8, 2016 at Our Lady of Fatima Catholic Church in Moses Lake followed by a Funeral Mass at 11 a.m. Donna will be interred in the church columbarium next to her husband Bob.