Donna Cole Egan passed away on May 11, 2023, at her home in Atlanta. Donna was born on July 5, 1928, in Columbus, Ohio, the third daughter of Don and Mary Cole. She graduated from the Columbus School for Girls, where she was president of the senior class. In 1950, she graduated from Manhattanville College in New York City, with a degree in English.
During her senior year in college, Donna met Yale student Michael Egan of Savannah on a blind date. They were married in Columbus in April 1951. Since Mike had been recalled to active service in the Army in the Korean War, they spent their honeymoon driving to San Francisco to put Mike on a ship to Korea. After the war, Mike enrolled in Harvard Law School, and the couple spent the next three years living in Cambridge, Massachusetts, where their first child was born.
In 1955 the Egans moved to Atlanta, where Mike practiced law at Sutherland, Asbill and Brennan. Five more children arrived over eleven years. The Egans were devoted members of the Cathedral of Christ the King for over sixty years, and Donna was very active in church and school affairs. She was a long-time board member and served as President of the Village of St. Joseph. During Mike’s long political career, she was a full partner in his many victorious campaigns for the Georgia House and the Georgia Senate.
In 1977, Donna and Mike moved to Washington DC for three years while Mike served as Associate Attorney General in the US Justice Department during the Carter Administration. Donna could always hold her own in any discussions of politics and policy, and she viewed this time in the nation’s capital as an exhilarating highlight of her special life.
Donna had lifelong passions for the arts, literature, and the natural world. She served as one of the first presidents of the Friends of the Atlanta-Fulton Public Library and was a devoted, long-time member of two different book clubs. Even during the pandemic, she insisted on honoring her volunteer commitment to shelving books at her community’s library! She had a gift for friendship, maintaining regular contact with friends from Columbus, Manhattanville, and all over Atlanta. In recent years, she could regularly be found greeting friends as she walked in the gardens at Canterbury Court.
Donna tackled life with a resilient cheer, an unfailing positive attitude, and a joyful sense of humor. Everyone who met her was struck by her beauty, charm, intelligence, and empathy. She cared deeply for her fellow human beings from all walks of life. She possessed a radiant smile that warmed many hearts throughout her long life. Legions of her children's friends adored her. They all loved “Mrs. Egan”.
Donna’s greatest happiness was time spent with Mike and their large yet very close family, gathering at their home in Brookwood Hills, at Tybee Island, and at Litchfield Beach, not to mention numerous holidays, weddings, and other celebrations. Donna was predeceased by her husband Mike and also her longtime housekeeper and dear friend Evelyn Brown. She is survived by her beloved family: six children: Moira Egan (Jim Vore) of Washington D.C., Michael Egan III (Mindy) of Atlanta, Donna Egan Rogers (Jim) of Greenville, SC, Cole Egan (Lee) of Atlanta, Roby Egan of San Diego, and John Egan (Valerie) of Atlanta, and sixteen grandchildren: Nina Vore Myers, Michael Egan IV, Katie Egan Hammer, Jack Egan, Chas Egan, Eleanor Rogers, Sam Rogers, Cole Egan, Jr., Cameron Egan, Emily Egan Conners, Mallie Egan, John Egan, Jr., Jake Egan, Jackson Egan, Joe Egan and Sam Kravitz, and five great-grandchildren.
The family would also like to express their gratitude to Priscilla Colquitt, who was a loving and caring companion to Donna over the last year, and also to Lakisha Roman.
A funeral Mass celebrating Donna’s life will be held at the Cathedral of Christ the King at 10:00 am on Thursday May 18th. The family will receive visitors following the service. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to the Cathedral of Christ the King, 2699 Peachtree Road, Atlanta, GA 30305 or to The Atlanta History Center, 130 West Paces Ferry Rd NW, Atlanta, GA
