Donna Lyn Long

Donna was preceded in death by parents Irma and Maynard Patterson and brother Brian Patterson. She is survived by husband Norbert Ananjew, Brothers Bruce and Steven Patterson, children Becca Justiniano and David Long, and grandchildren Brianna, Hunter, Norman, Josephine, Niko, and Margaret. She was anticipating her first great-grandchild.

Donna got her BA in elementary education, but quickly learned that creating bulletin boards was a larger part of the job than she anticipated and was too "artsy-fartsy" for her tastes so she decided to open an in-home daycare. She was loved by many children over the years, and successfully got them to eat their vegetables without fighting. She also gave in to the truism that the box is more interesting than the toy in many cases and stocked her toy room with a blend of found toys (like the tops of frozen juice cans and blocks made from milk cartons) and bought toys (like trucks and dolls). She even organized fun and unique field trips like a tour of the school bus depot (which for pre-school aged kids was as exciting as it gets). She also spent much of her time finding ways to help her community. Sometimes formally like her work with the Dignity Center, and sometimes just as things came up.

She was much loved and will be greatly missed.