Donna Mae (Wagner) Watkins, 95, passed away June 30, 2020. Funeral service will be at 10:30 a.m., Saturday, July 11, at South Rock Christian Church, 900 S. Rock Road, Derby. Visitation with family present will be prior to the service at 9:30 a.m. Burial will be at Highland Cemetery, Medicine Lodge, Kansas at 3:00 p.m. on Saturday. Donna was born January 18, 1925, on a farm northwest of Capron, Oklahoma, to Jake and Katherine Wagner. She attended Capron schools, graduating in 1942. Immediately following graduation, she moved with her parents to Wichita, Kansas. In 1943, she went to work for Boeing Airplane Company in the payroll department where she worked for three years. In May, 1945, she married Homer R. Watkins, of Medicine Lodge, Kansas, in Harlingen,Texas, before he went overseas. After World War II, she and Homer resided in Wichita for a short time before moving to Garden City, Kansas. The family moved to Lakin, Kansas in May, 1949, where they raised their children. In 1968, she began working for the Kearny County Clerk’s Office and later transferred to the Appraiser’s Office where she worked for 25 years, taking the Kearny County census each of those years. She retired in July, 1993. Donna was a member of the First Christian Church of Lakin, where she was involved with the Christian Women’s Fellowship. She also was a charter member of the LaFlora Garden Club, member of the Heritage Seekers of Southwest Kansas of the American Society of Germans from Russia, a life member of the Kearny County Historical Society, a member of the Kearny County Golden Agers, and a life member of The Golden Wheat Chapter of the American Historical Society of Germans from Russia in Wichita. In Derby, she was active in the Golden Agers group who sewed Quilts of Valor. Donna loved to grow flowers inside the home as well as in the yard. She also loved to cook and she excelled in quilting. She gave many quilts to her children and grandchildren. She was also interested in genealogy and worked extensively on the family histories of both sides of the family. Donna loved her grandchildren and great-grandchildren dearly. She always shared stories with everyone on how her family was doing and what was new in their lives. In 2002, she and Homer moved from Lakin to Derby, Kansas to be closer to their family. She joined South Rock Christian Church in Derby. Church was always an important part of her life. She celebrated her 90th birthday in 2015 at the South Rock Road Christian Church with approximately 125 friends and family from all over the country attending. She was preceded in death by her husband, Homer (March 15, 2005), her parents and her brother, Vernon Wagner. Survivors include her son, Randall (LeArta) of Derby, Ks, daughter, Pamela (Morgan) , Houston, Tx, Grandchildren: Amy Rohr, John Watkins, Amanda Ast, Katy Gottsponer, Lindsay Gottsponer, and Peter Gottsponer, and eight great-grandchildren. Memorials have been established with South Rock Christian Church of Derby and the Golden Wheat Chapter of the American Historical Society of Germans from Russia.
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