 1931 - 2006 (75 years)
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| Name |
Dona Jean Murren [1, 2] |
| Birth |
14 Feb 1931 |
University of Chicago Hospital, Chicago, Cook, Illinois, USA  [1, 3, 4, 5, 6] |
| Gender |
Female |
| Death |
26 Nov 2006 |
Chesterton, Porter, Indiana, USA [4] |
| SSN issued |
Indiana, USA [4] |
| Name |
Dona Jean Murren Wilkes [3, 4, 7, 8] |
| Social Security Number |
307-30-6671 [4] |
| Death |
26 Nov 2006 |
St Augustine, St Johns, Florida, USA [3, 5, 6] |
- Dona Jean Murren Wilkes, 76, of St. Augustine, Fla., died at home Nov. 26, 2006.
She was born Feb. 14, 1931 at the University of Chicago Hospital, the only child of Reginald Murren, M.D. and Eva Irene Miller.
In 1960 she married architect Delano Wilkes in the Unitarian Church in Geneva, Ill., who survives in Fla.
Dona was a professor of literature and humanities at the College of DuPage, where she was employed for 30 years. There she spearheaded the gifted student program and initiated film study course work to develop writing skills. She served two terms as president of the teachers council to the college board of trustees. In service to the community of Dune Acres, Ind., where she owned property for 27 years, Dona informed the town board of certain egregious land misuses and animal abuses occurring in town parks.
She was buried in the Wilkes Family plot Dec. 2, 2006 at Westview Cemetery in Palatka, Fla. The private service was attended by her husband; brother-in-law, John Wilkes; nephew, Scott Wilkes and best friends, Cynthia Weatherby and Robert Burris. Cousin survivors include the Vallee family of Sarasota and the Millers of Marco Island and Madison, Wis.
Masters Funeral Home of Palatka handled funeral arrangements.
Posted 12/19/2006 Chesterton Tribune
Dona Jean Murren Wilkes
Dona Jean Murren Wilkes, 76, of St. Augustine, died at home on Nov. 26, 2006. Community Hospice of Northeast Florida provided terminal care.
Death resulted from congestive lymphedema initiated by two ankle replacement surgeries in 2001. Dona was born on Feb. 14, 1931 at the University of Chicago Hospital. She was the only child of Reginald Murren, M.D., and Eva Irene Miller, teacher, of Kansas City and Chicago respectively. Shortly after her birth her parents were divorced.
Dona's mother and grandmother raised her in Oak Park, Illinois. The grandmother, Mabel Clearwater Miller, was a Christian Science Practitioner in the Chicago area. With such tutelage, Dona became an able pianist and an avid reader. As a teenager, Dona was asked by a classmate to join her by taking an undergraduate examination for acceptance into the University of Chicago. This program was a product of the Great Books Studies as conceived by the university's president, Robert Maynard Hutchins. Her friend did not pass the test but Dona did. At the age of 15 Dona became an "early entrant" to the University of Chicago without ever graduating from high school. Her most memorable academic experience was to receive her Bachelor of Arts diploma from the hand of Dr. Hutchins at the age of 18.
For years Dona commuted grueling distances to and from the suburbs to attend classes. She worked exhausting hours at Marshal Fields as an elevator operator and later as the receptionist in the store's beauty salon, to pay her college tuition. Eventually Dona earned a master's degree of literature at Chicago. Although modest about her impressive gift of memory, Dona could recite long passages of poetry from John Dunne to T. S. Eliot.
Dona followed her Mother's example and became a teacher. She taught at the College of Northern Illinois in De Kalb, and then joined the College of DuPage for the next 30 years. There, she achieved the status of professor of literature and humanities. Among Dona's accomplishments at DuPage was spearheading the gifted student program. She initiated film study course work as a means to develop expository writing skills. She served two terms as president of the teacher's council to the college board of trustees. In service to the community of Dune Acres, Ind., where she owned property for 27 years, Dona bravely informed the town board of certain egregious land misuses and animal abuses occurring in the town parks.
In 1960, Dona married a licensed architect, Delano Wilkes, in the Unitarian Church in Geneva, Ill. Bereft of children, the young couple worked diligently together to create a professional and cultural life. They regularly attended the Chicago Art Institute, the Chicago Symphony and operas at the Lyric Theatre. In 1994 they attended classical musical festivals in Vienna and Salzburg, Austria. They enthusiastically attended Williamsburg antique forums, visited museums and traveled throughout the U.S.A. In 1994 they attended classical music festivals in Vienna and Salzburg, Austria. They were active in patriotic organizations such as the Society of Colonial Wars, the New England Historic Genealogical Society and especially, since 1977, the Folsom Family Association.
As frequent visitors to northeast Florida, Dona and her husband bought and enjoyed an oceanfront condominium in Crescent Beach in 1990. Upon retirement in 1998, they selected a home in St. Augustine's Marsh Creek Country Club with a superb view of the salt marsh and the Matanzas River beyond. Dona enjoyed this setting, the climate and visits from friends and former students. She also happily participated in the Marsh Creek Book Club discussions.
Over the course of her life Dona took great pleasure in her students and other friendships. She loved the beauty of the earth and respected the majesty of the universe. Occasionally she did express regret that as a young girl she had no active father. But on her deathbed that deep anguish was resolved. Her last words were, "That's all right, Father."
Dona Wilkes was buried in the Wilkes Family plot on Dec. 2, 2006 at Westview Cemetery in Palatka. The private service was attended by her husband; brother-in-law, John Wilkes; nephew, Scott Wilkes; best friends, Cynthia Weatherby and Robert Burris. Cousin survivors include the Vallee family of Sarasota and the Millers of Marco Island and Madison, Wis.
Masters Funeral Home of Palatka attended the funeral arrangements.
PAID NOTICE
(St. Augustine Record, 12/20/06)
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| Burial |
2 Dec 2006 |
Westview Cemetery, Palatka, Putnam, Florida, USA [2, 9, 10] |
| Person ID |
I16003 |
tng Genealogy |
| Family |
Delano Angus Wilkes, b. 25 Jan 1935, Panama City, Bay, Florida, USA d. 4 Feb 2015, Flagler Hospital, St Augustine, St Johns, Florida, USA (Age 80 years) |
| Family ID |
F5218 |
Group Sheet | Family Chart |
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| Event Map |
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 | Death - 26 Nov 2006 - Chesterton, Porter, Indiana, USA |
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 | SSN issued - - Indiana, USA |
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 | Death - 26 Nov 2006 - St Augustine, St Johns, Florida, USA |
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| Sources |
- [S569] Ancestry.com, Cook County, Illinois Birth Index, 1916-1935, (Name: Ancestry.com Operations Inc; Location: Provo, UT, USA; Date: 2008;).
Record for Dona Murren
http://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?db=CookCountyBirths&h=1851196&indiv=try
http://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?db=CookCountyBirths&h=1851196&indiv=try
- [S304] Ancestry.com, United States Obituary Collection, (Name: Provo, UT, USA: The Generations Network, Inc., 2006;).
United States Obituary Collection 2006.Original data - See newspaper information provided with each entry. Dona Jean Murren Wilkes
- [S514] Ancestry.com, Florida, Jacksonville Area Obituary Collection, 1851-2009, (Name: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc.; Location: Provo, UT, USA; Date: 2010;).
Record for Dona Jean Murren Wilkes
http://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?db=FLjacksonvilleobitcoll&h=55665&indiv=try
[ View obituary]
http://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?db=FLjacksonvilleobitcoll&h=55665&indiv=try
- [S344] Ancestry.com, Social Security Death Index, (Name: The Generations Network, Inc.; Location: Provo, UT, USA; Date: 2009;).
Social Security Death Index 2007.Original data - Social Security Administration. Social Security Death Index, Master File. Social Security Administration.
http://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?db=ssdi&h=78929933&indiv=try
http://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?db=ssdi&h=78929933&indiv=try
- [S304] Ancestry.com, United States Obituary Collection, (Name: Provo, UT, USA: The Generations Network, Inc., 2006;).
United States Obituary Collection 2006.Original data - See newspaper information provided with each entry. Dona Jean Murren Wilkes
http://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?db=web-obituary&h=13266834&indiv=try
http://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?db=web-obituary&h=13266834&indiv=try
- [S304] Ancestry.com, United States Obituary Collection, (Name: Provo, UT, USA: The Generations Network, Inc., 2006;).
United States Obituary Collection 2006.Original data - See newspaper information provided with each entry. Dona Jean Murren Wilkes
http://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?db=web-obituary&h=13276844&indiv=try
http://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?db=web-obituary&h=13276844&indiv=try
- [S304] Ancestry.com, United States Obituary Collection, (Name: Provo, UT, USA: The Generations Network, Inc., 2006;).
United States Obituary Collection 2006.Original data - See newspaper information provided with each entry.
http://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?db=web-obituary&h=13266834&indiv=try
http://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?db=web-obituary&h=13266834&indiv=try
- [S304] Ancestry.com, United States Obituary Collection, (Name: Provo, UT, USA: The Generations Network, Inc., 2006;).
United States Obituary Collection 2006.Original data - See newspaper information provided with each entry.
http://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?db=web-obituary&h=13276844&indiv=try
http://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?db=web-obituary&h=13276844&indiv=try
- [S142] Gravestone.
[ View gravestone photograph]
- [S316] Westview Cemetery, Palatka, Putnam, Florida.
View Cemetery Listing
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