Donna M. Wolfe

Obituary – Donna M. Wolfe (1930-2023)
Donna M. Wolfe (Schaef) passed away peacefully in her sleep on September 21, 2023, while holding the hand of her husband, Harold F. Wolfe, at her home in Big Flats, NY.  Donna, the daughter of Gustav and Elizabeth Schaef, was born in Chicago, Illinois on July 14, 1930, and became a resident of the southern tier of NY when her parents moved their family from Chicago to the town of Caton, purchasing a dairy farm. There, along with two older brothers, and an older sister, Nicholas, Robert and Thelma (Courtright), the family lived on and operated the dairy farm, which stayed in the family until the mid-1980’s.  Her parents and siblings have predeceased her over these past many years.
Harold & Donna met each other at a dance at the Carpenter’s Hayloft in 1947 and have been together for all these 76 years.  They married in 1949, at the North Presbyterian Church in Elmira and have remained members of that church ever since. In the early 50’s, while Harold served our Country as an Air Traffic Controller, overseas in the Korean War, Donna moved back to her family’s farm, and worked for the Corning Glass Works. She held other jobs over the years using her exemplary secretarial skills.
When Harold returned from overseas, he was stationed for three years at the Westover Air Force Base in Springfield, Massachusetts, at where he and Donna then lived for three years, and during that time, their first daughter, Gale Wolfe (John Palladino) was born.  Completing their service to the Air Force, the family moved back to the Elmira area, purchasing a home and living there for a short time before moving to their Big Flats home in 1962 on Sing Sing Road. Afterwards daughter Lisa Wolfe (Kent Casler) was born followed by son, Colin Wolfe, 2 years later. Donna is survived by her husband, children and two grandchildren, Jacqueline Wolfe and Ashley Wolfe, as well as several nieces and nephews.
While raising her children, Donna was employed at the Horseheads High School, working in the Social Studies Department, assisting the history teachers, and she became the matron of the Social Studies Resource Center at the high school, working there for 20 years.  She truly enjoyed working in the history department and enjoyed staying current with political issues of our country.  Visiting historical places was always a part of their vacation trips with their motorhome.  After retiring from the school district, she volunteered her time with the Arnot Ogden Auxiliary, working in the organization’s “Thrift Shop” and assisting Harold with events associated with fundraising done for the Children’s Miracle Network.  Also during their earlier retirement years, the couple spent the winters in LaBelle, Florida, where they lived in a modest retirement community. Donna was known for the wonderful dinners she made for the family over the years; she was a great cook. She enjoyed doing crossword puzzles, reading, and watching Jeopardy, often knowing all the answers!  It was during 2020, during the Covid pandemic that Donna started exhibiting early signs of dementia, and for the following three years, she was, bit by bit, taken away from her family by the terrible disease.  Harold kept a promise that she would never have to leave her home in Big Flats, and it was from there that she passed on to Heaven, while Harold held her hand, and her little white poodle, Nate, laid tucked in against her.  The family thanks everyone for all that they have done to support Donna, especially during this past year.  Memorial services will be planned by the family in the future.