Donna Kathleen (Roberts) Emard went to her eternal home at 5:50am on November 14, 2020 at the young age of 82 years old. All her life she enjoyed her family, her children, her grandchildren and great grandchildren, pets (large and small), gardening and all the different people she encountered in her daily life, both young and old.
Donna was born in Yakima, WA on January 20, 1938 to Don and Gladys Roberts. Donna was the oldest of 4 children and grew up on 13th and Mead Ave in Yakima. Many hours were spent there playing with her siblings, numerous cousins and friends that lived nearby. She loved riding her bike, reading, playing her violin with her brother and her time spent in the Campfire Girls. The adventures to her Aunt and Uncle’s homes were magical for her and her trips to Baker, Oregon to visit the Kuhl family were some of her fondest memories. Riding out with Uncle Bill on his veterinary rounds were exciting and further increased her passion for animals.
1956 was a momentous year for Donna. She married Clem Emard in April, graduated from Yakima High School in May, and gave birth to her first child Cindy, in December. In June 1957 Donna and Clem moved their small family to Seattle, WA, and there over the next fifteen years had four more children; Mark, Joseph, Phillip and Christina. Donna remained in Seattle until 1998 when she retired and moved back to Yakima to live by her mother Gladys for the remainder of her years.
Donna was always active in her children’s lives; She participated in PTA, was a Campfire Girl leader, spent many hours watching and supporting her 3 sons play football and countless hours at her youngest daughter’s horse shows. Several years in a row, every August, she hauled her daughter’s and the neighbors beautiful Arabian horses to Canada to compete at the PNE Fair.
Not only was she mom to her kids, but she also had open arms to several neighborhood kids who would fill her house; most weekends saw at least 6 – 8 extra kids staying there. She never said no to the request of her children to bring along their friends to whatever adventure they were up to.
Donna started working at 16 years of age, beginning and ending with retail. Her favorite job though was her last job; having dedicated 27 years of her life to the variety store known as Chubby and Tubby’s in the Rainier Valley. She started in the shoe department there but her real love was the garden center. 20 of the 27 years working at Chubby and Tubby’s was spent in the garden center; helping develop and design many of the yards in the nearby neighborhood of Mt. Baker. She took great pride in being able to help design gardens that would thrive through the seasons and give beauty for years to come. When her customers asked gardening questions that she did not know the answer to, she took their name and number and called them back when she had an answer. Taking care of those who came into her store, she would special order plants for her regular shoppers making sure they would, and could, survive in their area of the world. Donna loved being able sell the .99 cent pumpkins for Halloween and the $5.00 Christmas trees.
Donna spent her retirement years back in her childhood home in Yakima. Some of her greatest pleasures involved working in her yard, sitting by her pond and playing with her dogs. A huge Seahawks fan she made sure to never miss a game. Donna moved to Orchard Park in 2018 where she found great enjoyment in going on field trips that were planned, the musical events held in the common room and all the friends she made there.
Donna was survived by her brother, Wayne Roberts, her sister, Marianne (Roberts) Baxter, Her 5 children; Cindy (Emard) Borland, Mark Emard, Joseph Emard, Phillip Emard and Christina (Emard) Gutierrez
Her 14 grandchildren, Jessica, Paul, Michael, Lisa, Victoria, Steffen, Zachary, Nikquel, Jordan, Noelle, Van, Anthony, Megan and Shanti-Aunna; Her 8 great grandchildren, and her many cousins, nieces, and nephews.
Donna was preceded in death by her husband, Clement Emard, her parents, Don and Gladys Roberts and her youngest brother Samuel Roberts.
Viewing and visitation will be held on Thursday, December 3, 2020 from 4:00pm until 8:00pm at Langevin El Paraiso Funeral Home 1010 W Yakima Ave.
A family graveside service will be held on Friday, December 4, 2020 at 10:00am at Tahoma Cemetery 1802 Tahoma Ave followed by services at Westside Church 6901 Summitview Ave. at 11:00am.
A celebration of Donna’s life will be held Sunday, July 4, 2021 at her daughter’s (Cindy) home in Enumclaw WA.
Memorial contributions honoring Donna may be made to Yakima Humane Society, Yakima Area Arboretum or Westside Church.
A special thanks to Angel Services and to Virginia Mason Memorial Hospice for the loving care of Donna in her final months.
To share a fond memory of Donna please visit www.lepfuneralhome.com
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