Donna Jean (Bell) Ethridge

Donna Jean (Bell) Ethridge was born on December 26, 1943, in Ellsworth, Kansas. Her parents were Samuel Paul and Martha Kathryn (Belt) Bell. While very young, her family moved to Salina, Kansas where she graduated from Salina Central High School. Donna was known for her kind, loving, and compassionate personality so after graduation she moved to Topeka, Kansas where she attended nursing school. She loved helping people. She worked in the healthcare field as a Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) for several years before moving back to Salina to work. Donna met Larry Dean Ethridge and they were married on June 10th, 1966. They had two children, Troy and Denise, who were the light of her life. Donna and Larry had several moves due to his job with Southwestern Bell Telephone, but they never left the state of Kansas. Donna continued working in many areas of nursing as they moved across the state. In 1990, they moved to Manhattan, Kansas and built a home at Tuttle Creek Lake. In 1999, she went back to college to obtain her Registered Nurse (RN) degree graduating summa cum laude. Over the years, Donna had nursing opportunities in family practice, private home care, nursing homes, and infectious diseases but geriatrics was her favorite. She was well known for giving pain-free shots and patients often requested her. Once both she and Larry were retired, they enjoyed traveling and camping in their 5th wheel. She spent lots of time with her children and grandchildren. While in Manhattan, she was an active member of the First Baptist Church and the American Baptist Women's Organization where she held several offices and was past President. Her church family was extremely important to Donna. She also served on the Board of Director's at Meadowlark Hills Retirement Community.

On June 10, 2016, Donna and Larry celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary with a celebration thrown by their children. Donna was later preceded in death by Larry, who passed away September 22, 2018. They were married 52 years. Donna then moved back to Topeka, Kansas to be closer to family especially her two grandchildren Lauren and Jacob whom she loved a great deal. She began attending the First Baptist Church in Topeka.

Donna was known for her art and ceramic work and taught ceramic lessons for many years. She was a certified teacher for three ceramic paint companies. At one point, she started and owned her own shop, the Ceramic & Gift Shop, and sold her beautiful ceramics in craft fairs all over the state for many years. She enjoyed and participated in sports throughout her life such as softball, tennis, swimming and bowling. In bowling, Donna received many awards and trophies, and was a delegate to the national convention meetings of W.I.B.C. across the United States. She was a huge Kansas State University Wildcats fan and also followed the Kansas City Chiefs and Royals. She loved to play bridge and was known for her bridge parties at Christmas. Donna was a lifetime member of the VFW and the Local Hospital Auxiliary. She also belonged to several nursing organizations and still held a current RN license. She loved animals, especially her little dog Riley, and was a member of the ASPCA. She was a fantastic cook and often delivered food and goodies to family and church friends. Donna was also a card-carrying member of the N.R.A.

She leaves behind her son Troy (Tammy) Ethridge, of Salina, daughter Denise (Dennis) Ensley and their two children Lauren and Jacob, all of Topeka, twin sisters Karen (Ron) Hoffman and Koleene Zimmerman, several nieces and nephews, dog Riley, and many friends. She will be greatly missed.

Donna's wish was to be cremated with a memorial service for family and friends at a later time. The memorial is expected to be planned sometime in early 2023. Memorial contributions may be sent to the First Baptist Church of Manhattan (2121 Blue Hills Road, Manhattan, KS 66502), the First Baptist Church of Topeka (3033 SW MacVicar Avenue, Topeka, KS 66611), the Riley County Humane Society (P.O. Box 1202, Manhattan, KS 66505), or the ASPCA.