Donna Jean (Roush) Wilson
Donna Jean (Roush) Wilson was born April 19, 1932, in Taylor County, IA to Leslie and Cleo (Posten) Roush. Her family lived on a farm north of New Market, IA, where she and her older brother Carrell attended country school. They had to walk 1-1/2 miles to school, with a group of 5 boys and Donna being the only girl. They carried a bucket which held peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for their lunch. It was a long cold walk in the winter, and of course, uphill both ways! When she was 10 years old, the family moved to a farm just outside of Gravity, IA. She graduated from High School in Gravity in 1950.
She took a business course in St. Joseph, MO and with that obtained a job as a telephone operator. This was a great job for her as she LOVED to talk! She later transferred to Clarinda, IA so she could be closer to Curt. After her 3 children were born, she worked at the sale barn in Grant City, MO for a few years, before staying home to raise her family and help out on the farm.
She met Curtis Glenn Wilson on a blind date in 1954-55 and Curt always joked “he was blind as a bat”. They were married on Dec. 30, 1955, at her parent’s house in Gravity, IA. Their first home was a small farm near the Iowa/Missouri state line in 1956. They had 3 children together, Douglas Glenn (11/8/56), Diane Lynne (2/13/58) and David Dean (2/26/60). Shortly thereafter they moved a few miles east of Redding, IA then to a stock farm in Maloy, IA where they raised 200 head of cattle and farmed 600 acres. They spent 24 years there and enjoyed visits from family, especially during the hunting season when they would stay for several days. Donna loved to cook and often made her specialty meatloaf that everyone loved.
In 1983 with the economic struggles of farming, and no kids at home anymore, they moved to Creston, IA. Donna found her perfect job – selling Avon. She loved using it herself – wearing various jewelry, nail polish, lipstick and perfume, but the thing she loved the most was the chance to talk to people all over town. She’d be gone for hours getting new orders and then again when she delivered them, all the while telling people about her family and hearing about theirs. Many of her Avon customers became her closest friends. Besides being known for Avon, Donna and Curt were well known for their dancing. Doug played bass guitar and Dave played drums, in separate country western bands. Every weekend Donna and Curt went to one or the other’s venue and two stepped all night long. Their sons learned to dance themselves by watching their parents’ dance.
This was also a good chance for Donna to visit with people. She’d go around the room to say hello (and much more) to everyone that was there. When a song would come on that she liked, she’d go over to Curt and say, “Wanna dance that one Curtie?” He’d say yes but didn’t get up from his chair because he knew he’d be waiting awhile. Donna would visit with people sitting at her table, then once again ask Curt to dance. He’d say yes once again but remained seated as she was still visiting. Finally, they’d get out on the dance floor and at times only make it one time around the dance floor before the song was over. Regardless of how long they danced, they made it look effortless, and many people enjoyed watching them and complimented them.
Brad Paisley must have been inspired by women like Donna to write the song “Waiting on a Woman”. No matter how much ahead of time she started getting ready to go somewhere, she was ALWAYS late. But she showed up ready to have fun and everyone had fun with her. She dearly loved her children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren and had no problem showing it. Whether it meant wearing a red blinking Rudolph nose, or Easter bunny ears, she’d do whatever it took to make them laugh and have fun. That continued even into her 90’s. Whenever the Mt. Ayr Health Care Center had an activity, you could bet she was first in line. Whether it was a wiffle baseball game or a Slip-N-Slide, she was IN! We can’t thank the MAHCC enough for the amazing care she had there. They were her family when her blood family wasn’t there. You can’t get any better than that.
Donna passed away on December 9, 2024. She was preceded in death by her parents, Leslie and Cleo Roush; husband Curt Wilson, daughter Diane Drake (12/8/24), and brother Darrell Roush.
Left to cherish her memory include her sons Doug Wilson (Lisa) of Creston, IA and Dave Wilson (Sandy) of Stanton, IA; son-in-law Greg Drake of Mt. Ayr, IA; grandchildren Chandra Poore (Scott) and Chanelle Cole (Justin) of Mt. Ayr, IA; Drew Wilson (Megan) of Clarinda, IA; Brett Wilson (Samantha) of Waverly, NE; Kyle Wilson (Taylor) of Creston, IA; Korey Wilson of Des Moines, IA; brothers Carrell Roush of Corning, IA and Jerry Roush (Linda) of Liberty, MO; sister Deloris Roush of Rogers, AK; great-grandchildren Harper and Bronx Wilson, Carter, Jackson and Phillip Wilson, Maddox and Maverick Wilson, Griffyn and Gavyn Cole, Karly and Kamryn Poore, and many other family and friends.
