Ladonna "Dovie" Atwell

     On July 1, 2023, Dovie LaDonna (Goodman) (Perkins) Atwell, loving wife, grandmother, great-grandmother, and great-great-great-grandmother, passed away at the age of 93 in Sun City, Arizona.                                        

     LaDonna was born on October 30, 1929, in Holdenville, Oklahoma to Lillian Paulina (Goodman) Perkins.  Growing up, LaDonna lived with her grandparents, moving from Oklahoma to Southern California in 1943.  At the age of 13, she and her grandmother worked in the fields of Bakersfield planting and picking crops to help earn money for the family.  She spent her teenage years in Yreka, California; Eugene, Oregon; Eureka, California; and finally Fort Jones, California, attending 4 different High Schools.  It was at Eureka High School where she met her future husband, Gerald (Dick) Atwell.  They married on March 3, 1948, and she graduated from Fort Jones High School the same year.

      With Dick, she moved from Fort Jones to Eureka, Freshwater, back to Eureka, and then up to Bayside, California.  With each move, they settled into a new home that Dick either built or remodeled with LaDonna by his side actively helping him every step of the way.  While in Northern California, they raised 5 children.  In 2000, Dick and LaDonna moved to a retirement community in Surprise, Arizona.  They were married for 62 years before his passing in 2010.

     LaDonna enjoyed planting fruits, vegetables, and flowers in her large garden in Bayside.  She took pride and joy with her large collection of Hummels.  One of her favorite pastimes during gatherings was playing cards with family.  She and Dick hosted many large holiday dinners.  Some of the best memories include apple picking in the Bayside orchard, Easter, Thanksgiving, and Christmas dinners, and those long intense games of Texas Rummy, 500, and Oh Hell.

     LaDonna was preceded in death by her husband, Gerald (Dick) Atwell, her daughter, Yvonne Brophy, and her granddaughter, Samantha Hamon.  She is survived by her children, Linda Eastham (Jerry), and Bonita Hamon (Gale), son in law, Michael Brophy, Gregory Atwell, and Patrick Atwell (Mary Lou); her 10 grandchildren, 20 great-grandchildren, and 2 great-great-grandchildren.

     La Donna was buried by her family on July 17th, at St. Bernard’s/Ocean View Cemetery in Eureka