Mary E. Donovan, 82, of Omaha, formerly of Oakland, died on Wednesday, April 10, 2024 in Omaha.

A Memorial Mass was held at 10:30 a.m. on May 3, 2024, at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Greeley. Father Lawrence Vadakkan presided. Inurnment was held in the Sacred Heart Cemetery in Greeley.

The family greeted friends on May 2, 2024, at Sacred Heart Catholic Church, followed by a Rosary. Jacobsen-Greenway- Dietz Funeral Home in St. Paul is assisting the family. Memorials are suggested to Golden Oaks Senior Center in Oakland, Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Greeley, or St. Joseph’s Catholic Church in Lyons.

Mary was born on February 25, 1942 to Ernest and Mary (Walsh) Ondracek in Greeley. Mary overcame polio as a young child and graduated from Greeley Sacred Heart High School in 1960. She received her Bachelor of Science degree in medical records from the College of St. Mary’s in 1966.

Mary wed William (Bill) Donovan on April 27, 1968 at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Greeley. They were blessed with four children. Mary worked in medical records before raising her children and serving as the bookkeeper for the family’s grocery store for eight years. She later was a teacher’s aide at a small country school near Oakland.

Mary loved attending her grandchildren’s activities. She volunteered to run a sing-along at the Oakland nursing home and often visited the sick and shut-ins. Mary enjoyed music, playing cards and games, and baking, especially her family’s favorite, cherry pie.

Mary was a regular participant at the Golden Oaks Senior Center in Oakland and a member of the Altar Society at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church, of which she was a former Woman of the Year. She was active in the Mothers of Twins Club when her children were young.

Those left to cherish her memory include her husband, William “Bill” Donovan; son and daughter- in-law, James “Jim” and Janet Donovan; daughters and sons-inlaw, Margaret “Meg” Donovan, Mary Donovan Martello and Subby Martello, and Kathleen and Clayton Carlin; grandchildren, Bill Donovan, Alexandria (Cam) Dacanay, Lance (Karly) Donovan, Patrick Westby, Jacob Westby, Carsen Carlin, Julia Carlin, Clayton Carlin, Brady Carlin, Cole Carlin, and Conner Carlin; one great-grandchild, Boston Donovan; brothers-inlaw and sisters-in-law, Dick Rech, Bob and Jean Donovan, Dan and Patty Donovan, Dave Donovan, and Dave Maiefski; and sisters-in-law and brothers-in-law, Betty Ondracek, Carol and Larry Schieffer, Marilyn Sonenberg, and Lisa and Joe Kucera.

Mary was preceded in death by her parents; sister, Anne Rech; brothers, Jim Ondracek and Joe Ondracek; and sister-inlaw, Susan Maiefski.

The Phonograph-Herald | May 8, 2024