Donna Rae Alger was born in Orland, CA to Joseph Henry Aldous and Vera Malissa Tracy. She had one full sister – Gladys Deaver. Her father passed away when Donna was 7 years of age and her mother married George Deaver and the family moved to San Jose. The blended family added 6 step-siblings (Marie, Norman, Dencil, Paul, Mary and Chuck) and three half-sisters (Nancy, Yvonne, and Gayle) making Donna one of 11 children in the family. While in Orland, Donna and her sister, Gladys, went to school in a one-room school house and did not have electricity in their home until they moved to San Jose.
Donna attended Notre Dame High School in San Jose and San Jose Technical where she fell in love with the art of weaving taught by Mrs. Glenna Harris. This would prove to be a lifelong passion, having annual entries in many local fairs including the current 2018 Alameda Co Fair. She loved weaving but purposefully stayed away from spinning and dying, saying she was not interested in that. Well, never say never, she eventually moved into spinning and loved to color and blend fibers to make her amazing creations.
Donna would weave with an end goal in mind – weaving for a specific project then turning that fabric into a garment. She did not have a problem cutting her beautiful weaving to create an extraordinary piece of clothing. She sewed most of her three children’s clothes. With all that idle time and her love of color she took up quilting. A class here and there, she would quilt for a project. Then a box of fabric here and there would be given to her, but what to do with all the bits that are left over? As a girl growing up in the depression – nothing was wasted. She would find a use for the bits! She became a member of the local quilt guild and spent hours piecing together various sized squares to make elaborately colored quilts to give away. Her quilts are prized possessions of many of her family members.
Donna met Wilbur Arthur Alger and married him in San Jose on 12/31/1948 after a short engagement. They were married for 64 years when Art passed away in the spring of 2013. They had 3 children: William, Karen, and Stanley, 4 grandchildren: Kevin, Kyle, April & Aaron, and 2 great grandchildren: Audrey & Emmett. They lived on 11th street (where Hwy 280 resides today), moved to Morgan Hill, then back to San Jose, always staying close to their roots.
As mom had always been a “farm” girl – she supported her children when they wanted to get involved in the 4-H organization and raise animals. She was a quiet person before the 4-H experience, but gradually took on leadership roles including project leader, local club leader, county roles, and All-star advisor. Raising animals and gardening continues to be a valued hobby for the entire Alger family.
Mom embraced Saint Maria Goretti Church as well. She was involved with the money counting group on Mondays, lead the Linen Ministry, and volunteered for the annual festival. She had a strong faith in our Lord and attended weekly mass regularly.
Mom found travel to be on the short list of “Have To Do’s”. With dad, she traveled to Australia, Germany, Canada, and several places within the United States. More recently, she traveled to Israel, China and Ireland. And of course the annual fishing trip to Alaska with family & friends where she showed everyone “how to get it done” with style.
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