Donna J. Leininger (Kocolatos)

Donna was born in the Bronx on February 23rd sometime in the twentieth century, in a year she would never wish to be disclosed. As a baby, she moved with her family to Queens Village, where she spent the majority of her life.

Since childhood, Donna’s passion was animals. She loved spending time at her grandparents’ farm in Pennsylvania where she rode Bumpy the Cow and cultivated her love of nature and wildlife.

Part of the “baby boom” generation, Donna came of age during the psychedelic sixties and loved artists such as Bob Dylan, The Rolling Stones, and The Doors; the latter she saw live twice, including at one of the band’s famed shows at The Fillmore East. She and her friend Linda next door dreamed of moving to Liverpool and marrying The Beatles. Later, Donna idolized artists such as Stevie Nicks and Prince and made a point to keep up with contemporary music.

At the same time, Donna was deeply interested in the past and in those who came before her. She loved Old Hollywood icons such as Bette Davis and Joan Crawford. She was fascinated by the idea of reincarnation and the notion that she’d lived before. She devoted herself with scholarly attention to the study of her family’s genealogy, yearning to discern a bridge between the present and the past.

A perpetual seeker, Donna strove constantly to obtain higher knowledge of this world and searched always for insights into what might await her in the next. She was never not reading a book, typically non-fiction, ranging in topics from history and science to theology and philosophy. She worked for many years at the Adelphi University College Bookstore. Raised in the Catholic tradition, Donna appreciated saints as much as she was intrigued by psychics. She adopted the middle name Joan in tribute to Joan of Arc, whose drastically unorthodox path and tremendous bravery Donna was deeply inspired by.

Always a list-maker, Donna long dreamt of skydiving and checked that accomplishment off the top of her bucket list in the last years of her life, an experience she shared with her daughter and nephew. She had more she wanted to do and learn.

Donna had an unmistakably altruistic bent. After reading a story in the newspaper about a woman who’d fallen on hard times, Donna managed to track her down, befriend her, and send her regular care packages. Not a week before Donna’s passing, she bought groceries for and gave a ride home to a woman who approached her in the supermarket parking lot and explained she had just lost her home in a fire and was staying in a shelter. Mere minutes before she passed, Donna was on her way out the door to take her best friend to a medical appointment. She had no plans to die that day, yet quickly is exactly the way she would have wanted to go; she was in no way suited for a slow decline.

Donna was predeceased by her loving parents George and Lucille. She is survived by her daughter Marcella; older sister Karen (and husband Roger); younger brother Richard (“Ricky”) (and wife Darlene); nephew George; niece Megan (and husband Ryan); grand-nephews Lincoln and Rhys; best friend since second grade Janice; and numerous pets including Jeffrey, her parrot of almost forty-five years.

Donna often repeated, with a laugh, the quote: “I don’t know where I’m going, but I’m on my way.” She wanted to know from family and friends what “sign” they would send her from beyond, should they predecease her, to let her know they made it safely to the other side. For her part, Donna maintained always that her sign would be a reference, in some form or another, to Nathaniel Hawthorne’s 1850 novel “The Scarlet Letter,” a book she read more than fifty times.

So, should you stumble upon a flaming-red letter “A” in the days, weeks, or months ahead, it just might be Donna, letting you know she’s somewhere, probably enjoying a Diet Coke (“with a twist of lemon, please”).

In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation in Donna's memory to any one of the animal charities listed below.