Merlyn E. Donais, 96, beloved wife of the late John “Jack” Donais passed away peacefully surrounded by family on April 24th at The Legacy of St Josephs.
Merlyn was born on August 18, 1928, in Litchfield, IL to Willis and Edna (Street) Covington moving to Kenosha at the age of 2. She grew up in Kenosha attending Lincoln Elementary, Lincoln Middle school and Kenosha High School.
Mert as she was known to friends, met Jack when she was 12 and they started dating at 16. They were married at St James Catholic Church on July 3, 1948. Merlyn and Jack had a wonderful 67 years together enjoying camping and fishing with their 4 children Tom, Tim, Joe and Lisa and eventually their grandchildren.
Merlyn was an LPN working at Kenosha Memorial in the 1950s and then remained a full-time mom and home maker until her part time job at Tremper High School as a lunch lady in the 1980s where Joe was attending high school.
The whole family joked that her other part time job was playing BINGO. She enjoyed playing 6 nights a week for many years even traveling in 1990 to Vegas to play with her daughter, Lisa. Although it was all about luck, Mert won enough money to pay for her daughter’s wedding dress in 1992. Merlyn described herself as a shy, wallflower, but she had no problems chatting with her fellow bingo players or camping neighbors.
After losing Jack in 2015, she continued to live on her own at their home and then at St Catherines Commons until 2020 when she moved in with her daughter Lisa and family. She could be found in her chair watching Jeopardy, Wheel of Fortune or any NCIS rerun whenever guests might come a calling.
She was a very strong woman who was a loving role model to her children and her grandchildren. She loved to mow the lawn and could back up a 30 ft trailer with ease. She will be deeply missed by her children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren.
Surviving Merlyn are her children, Tim (Lisa) Donais, Joe Donais, and Lisa (Greg) Winter; grandchildren, Michael, Kevin (Stevie Lukassen) and Steven Donais, Evan (Amanda), Adam (Guadalupe), Emily (Ollie Driver) Winter; great grandchildren, James, Xavier and Kingston Donais, and Laci Winter.
Along with her parents, Merlyn was preceded in death by her in-laws, Aldophe (Katherine) Donais; brother, Bernard (Ann) Covington; husband, Jack Donais and his siblings and spouses; and son Tom (Diane) in 2021.
Thank you to her caretakers Samantha Savaglio, Sarah Robles, and Dayna Laurenzi of Peace at Home for all their love and attention. The family is grateful that The Legacy of St Joes and Hospice Alliance could help Merlyn in her final days bringing her peace.
A visitation will be held on Thursday, May 1, 2025, at All Saints Mausoleum Chapel from 11:00 a.m. until the time of service at 11:30 a.m.
