Our dear Mother, Sister, Grandma, Great-grandma, Great-great-grandma, friend and role model passed through the veil into the arms of her Mother and many loved ones on January 20, 2018. Born in Basalt, Idaho, the sixth child and fifth daughter of Perry Lacartus and Lapreal Heaton Frandsen, she attended a two room school house in Kimball, Idaho. Her family moved to Bountiful, Utah where she became a cheer-leader at Bountiful Junior High School. They moved again to Carter, Wyoming where she developed the work ethic of a ranch hand hauling water daily from the well and cooking for the helpers. She met and married Harry Defa on June 13, 1942. Together they had six children. August 3, 1953 Harry was struck by lightning and died while mowing hay. A widow with six kids, she moved back to Bountiful to be close to her family. She put herself through beauty school to provide for her family and worked as a hair dresser until she was eighty-seven. Donna met and married Guy G. Judd on February 8, 1959. Guy had two sons of his own and together they had a son and daughter which made a beautifully blended family. Guy passed away April 27, 1987.
Preceded in death by her parents, siblings: Vivian, Bernice, Gwen, Grace, Miles and David; and 14 grandchildren. Survived by her sister, Jeanne, niece Joyce, who was raised as a sister, children: Sharron DiFabrizio, West Jordan, UT, Jerry (Ike) Defa, Olympia, WA, Kenny (Fama) Defa, Huntington, UT, Jeanette Defa, Washington, UT, Lynette Taylor, Sandy, UT, Becky (Mark) Flannery, Centerville, UT, Debbie (Russell) Hall, Bountiful, UT, Jimmy (Crystal) Judd, Elmo, UT, Richard (Judy) Judd, Provo, UT and Steven Judd; 42 grandchildren, 93 great-grandchildren; and 8 great-great-grandchildren.
Donna was small in stature but enormous in spirit and her approach to life. Waste-not-want-not, was her motto as she lived every day to its' fullest, not bashful to let you know how she felt. She boasted a bit about how good she was at softball, and how numerous teams sought her out to play for them. She would out work anyone, and mandated that work always come before play, a rule you didn't dare break.
Commitment to principle, family, work and the Lord was the role she loved, and perfected throughout her life. She loved family, music and children and will be missed by everyone.
Purple and pink are her colors and we will think of her whenever we see them. Grandma, we love you, and the legacy you have molded in all of us, thank you.
The family would like to thank Heart and Home Assisted Living and Renew Hospice who loved and cared for Donna every day.
Funeral services will be held at 11:00 a.m., Saturday, January 27, 2018 at the Bountiful 24th Ward, 720 East 500 North, Bountiful, Utah. Friends and family may call Friday evening from 6:00 - 8:00 p.m. at Russon Mortuary, 295 North Main, and Saturday morning 9:45-10:45 a.m. at the church prior to services. Interment-Bountiful City Cemetery. Online guest book at www.russonmortuary.com.
Published in Salt Lake Tribune from Jan. 25 to Jan. 26, 2018