Donna De Etta (Dugdale) Taschner

Donna De Etta (Dugdale) Taschner, age 81, of St. Louis Park, died peacefully Dec. 1, 2022, surrounded by family, following a courageous battle with cancer.

For Donna, it was about faith, family, friends and fun. She was an active member of Peace Presbyterian Church, she cherished any time spent with family and enjoyed special friendships with longtime neighbors, AZ snowbirds, church quilters, TOPS Club members, and her Ridgedale Y water exercise classmates. Donna was an avid sports fan of any team from MN or with a family member playing on it. She was kind, caring and always put others first; she had music in her heart, a beautiful smile, calming voice and was quick to share a laugh.

Donna was born Sept. 7, 1941, in Huron, SD, to Melvin and Evelyn (Emery) Dugdale. She grew up on Chase St. in De Smet, SD, the oldest of 8 children. Donna had a chance meeting with lifelong partner Ron Taschner of Willow Lake, SD at a roller-skating rink in 1958. She graduated from De Smet HS in 1959, attended Huron College for 1 year and married Ron in July 1960. They lived in Flandreau and Sisseton, SD, before moving to Bloomington, MN in 1963 for work. In 1966, they moved to St. Louis Park and raised 3 children across from Donna’s beloved Oak Hill Park. She had a rewarding 24-year career with Receivables Control Corp. before retiring in 2005, then focused on family, faith and travel.

Donna was preceded in death by her parents and sisters, Irene Lee and Rose Ann Carstens.

She is survived by husband, Ron; daughters, Tammy (Randy) Djerf and Teri (Andy) Hyrkas; son, Tony (Jenny) Taschner; grandchildren Katie (Ryan) Peterson, Travis (Lindsai) Djerf, Kelly Djerf, Andy (Cassi) Taschner, Nick (Libby) Taschner, Ben Taschner, and Evan and Tyler Hyrkas; great grandchildren Morgan Peterson, and Wyatt and Brynn Djerf; brothers, Lee (Sue), Richard (Pam), Jim (Mary) and Chris (Lily); sister, Mary Sue (Bill) Kant; brothers-in-law Suk Jo Lee and Bruce Carstens; nieces and nephews, and many friends.

Donna and family give special thanks to Dr. Mallen and the entire gynecologic oncology staff at Park Nicollet Clinic and Methodist Hospital for their skilled and loving care. Memorial contributions may be made to Peace Presbyterian Church and the Minnesota Ovarian Cancer Alliance, 4604 Chicago Ave. Minneapolis, MN 55407 or online at https://mnovarian.org/

Funeral service on Saturday, Dec. 10, 11 a.m., with visitation 1 hour prior, at Peace Presbyterian Church, 7624 Cedar Lake Rd., St. Louis Park.

The memorial service will be live streamed at:

https://www.facebook.com/PeacePresbyterian