Donna M. Stapleton

December 13, 1932-July 12, 2020

Donna Mae Stapleton, 87, of Santa Clara, CA passed away on July 12, 2020. She was born to Joseph Silveira Francis & Mary Ellen Rose in Hollister, CA. Her parents owned Snowflake Grocery on Delmas Ave in Willow Glen for 23 years. Donna attended Sacred Heart Elementary School on Willow St in San Jose, CA and Notre Dame High School, San Jose, CA class of 1950. She has been a resident of Santa Clara, CA for 65 years. Donna was the youngest of seven children.

Donna met the love of her life Ralph Stapleton while still in high school they were married in Sacred Heart Church, San Jose in July 1952 after Ralph returned home from the Army. Ralph & Donna were married for 41 years.

Her passion was antiques and she was the owner of Donna’s Antiques in The Courtyard in Downtown Campbell, CA for 15 years. She spent her time going to estate sales and garage sales to stock her store. She enjoyed chatting with customers and talking antiques.

Donna was a devoted wife, mother and grandmother and enjoyed spending time with her children and grandchildren. She was proud of her Portuguese heritage and was a parishioner at St. Clares Church for 65 years. She loved spending time with her life-long friends from Sacred Heart and Notre Dame and her friends from the other stores in The Courtyard.

Along with her parents Donna is preceded in death by her husband Ralph in August 1993 and her sisters Dorothy Porter, Lillian Whaley, Bernice Michaeloff, Yvonne Bosholm, Betty Ann Sacco and one brother Ernie Francis. She is survived by her children Tim (Peggy), Gayle Cullen and Janet Kasper, Seven grandchildren Shawn, Steven, Jennifer, Matthew, Christopher, Jamie and Sarah and three great grandchildren Dylan, Tobias and Ezra.

The family would like to thank her caregiver Valerie Harrison for her compassionate care and treating her like her own mother.

Donna will be laid to rest with her loving husband Ralph in the Santa Clara Mission Cemetery in Santa Clara, CA. A memorial service will be held at a future time and place yet to be determined.