Donna Lynn Winger

Donna Lynn was born on January 16, 1954 to Billie June and William Eugene Griggs, both of which have preceded her in death. She was the fifth of six daughters, Jackie (Bill), Pam (Ed), Sandra (John), Sheila (deceased) (Jerry) and Terry (Tim). She also had two stepsisters, Donna Gay and Tracey, and one half sister Darcy from her parents’ later marriages. She married Mick Winger on April 9, 1976. On March 28, 1983, she had her only child Disa. She became a mother in law (Llama) to Jimmy Medlock on October 7, 2007. In 2012 and 2014, she became a grandmother (Umma) to Xander and Joscelin. She was “Udder Mudder,” “Bonus Mom” bonus Grandma and loving Aunt to countless nieces, nephews, in-laws and non-blood related children. On April 29, 2023, she passed from her Earthly body to the care of Jesus and God, with whom she had spent a lifetime excited to one day meet. She passed at Sky Ridge, with the following people surrounding her: Mick, Disa, Jimmy, Sandra, Terry, Kellye and Becky, as well as final hours spent in the presence of Robb and Ash.

Donna was one of the hardest working women you would know, as she worked to keep her family financially secure in a time when it was exceptionally rare and unusual for a man to stay at home and not only raise, but homeschool their only child. She was extremely well loved in her profession in the Accounts Payable department at Lockheed Martin for over 25 years, and while she didn’t have the degree that many people had, she was a main expert in her department. She loved traveling to California, Florida and Pennsylvania for work trips, and you’d have found her organizing co-workers to go see the nearby sights, or even just going to see them on her own as needed.

Donna loved food. Generally an extremely picky eater (you knew never to even MENTION seafood to her), she took great pleasure in the meal she most enjoyed on a regular basis: her special potato soup. However, for the fact that she was usually very picky, she was surprisingly one of the most adventurous foodies, especially when it came to trying asian food, Bruschetta or desserts. If you asked her if she wanted “All the Garden,” Queso, homemade tacos, her special spaghetti or hibachi, the answer was almost always “ooooh.”

When she was home, you would likely find her in front of the television. She loved her drama and crime shows, like Blue Bloods or This Is Us. When she had the opportunity to sit down with her “sunula” (son in law, Jimmy), they would love to binge watch the Die Hard or Lethal Weapon series. Almost every night she would settle in the bedroom on the couch with Mick to watch movies like Rio Bravo and Thunderheart. For special occasions like birthdays or fun weekends, bringing in “Jimmystadas” or homemade tacos, she would go along with Mick and Disa to watch gentle romance movies or Hallmark.

Her other passions in life included being peoples’ “Life Photographer,” as she took pride in taking pictures everywhere she went, as well as being the keeper of photos for the family. She loved visiting the mountains and her in-laws’ cabin, listening to the sound of the wind rustling through the pine trees and the peace of the water babbling down the nearby river. When her mother was alive, she enjoyed visiting Blackhawk to go gambling with her and her sisters. Her favorite places to go to on trips were to Oklahoma to visit family, Mt. Rushmore, and the Grand Canyon.

Donna loved things that had pasts and stories, such as antiques and photos. She also loved a good deal, and enjoyed finding things on sale, at the Dollar Store, or any good ol’ clearance racks. She loved crosses, Jesus and passages from the Bible. Before the advent of smartphones and the Nintendo DS, you’d find her playing little games on little dedicated handheld poker game systems, or even farther back, working on word searches from the little books you’d find from the dollar store.

As a wife, Donna left a strong impression for Mick:

“Donna was one of the most loved people I ever knew, far surpassing me in nearly every field. She was so fun when we first met and she got my attention on every event we partook. She was FUN at the beginning and remained FUN our entire life together.

People know I always wanted to be accepted, so I have appreciation for others who are. To witness the levels of affection she received from so many was always a sparkle for me.

Our last fifteen years were probably the best, as we began learning how to age gracefully as a team. In the last year it was the same movie we watched every night. She said, “You want Rio?” I said of course. She loved John Wayne in Rio Bravo.

We would watch it until we were all cozied out and then we would go to bed, sometimes talking for hours. These were the best times.

I miss her so much, I did not know these levels of sorrow before.

But now I know she is safely in Jesus’ in the world of God our Father.”

As a mother, Donna was huge on making sure Disa had experiences that became lifelong traditions, like going to the Boo at the Zoo for Halloween, going to the Chatfield Arboretum for the Pumpkin Festival, and doing the Childrens’ Museum and Casa Bonita for every birthday. She would do special things alone with Disa, especially when there were events with her job, like going to Armadillo and the Heritage Square Music Hall, the Pepsi Center to see symphonies or games. Though both women were sometimes confused and frustrated with how the other thought and acted, they always retained love and respect for one another throughout the 40 years they shared together. Donna passed along to Disa that deep well of love and passion to make others feel loved and special, which is something that her daughter will be eternally grateful for.

Donna was the best sister anyone could ask for, and she supported her family no matter what. She loved going to baseball games and concerts with her sisters. Singing in bands, a cappella or doing karaoke were also favorite things to do. She often spent special time with nieces and nephews, giving her sisters a break and building bonus mom relationships with the kids.

As a daughter, she spent countless hours on the phone or over at her mother’s house. They loved to shop, play Skip Bo or Rummikub. She worked closely with her sisters and niece while her mother’s health declined, and was an exceptional loving caregiver during that time. Many of her trips in the course of her life were to go to Oklahoma to visit her father. When he was going to pass away soon, and she had an opportunity to spend a final weekend with him, she made the decision to stay an extra day or two, taking time off, to extend her last moments with him. She was also very close to her in-laws (Jake and Juanita) before their passing. You would often find her in conversation with them, whether it was quiet or impassioned. Shopping, cooking and eating were common things she would do with them.

She was a fantastic “Umma” to Xander and Joscelin. Both boys loved doing prayers with her, and she was instrumental in their faith life, teaching them about God and Jesus from the youngest ages. Xanny’s special memories are of cuddling with and talking to her, hanging out with her in her room, watching her laugh and smile, her goofiness, making Jello and cooking with her, and he just loved everything about her (except her liver problem - no one liked that). Joscelin’s favorite things about her was how she always let him cook with her, made and shared her potato soup. He loved talking to her, playing with her and her special stuffie “Lamb Lamb.”

Donna was known for her big heart. If she knew someone had a dream, she did her best to make it happen. There was the time she took Disa and Mick to see Celine Dion opening the Pepsi Center, and when she planned a weeklong trip to the Grand Canyon for her husband (not knowing it would turn into a yearly thing!). She did a special graduation trip with Disa and Sam to South Dakota, where they took in numerous sights. Squirreling away money to help people, was something she loved doing, and was known for.

The holiday season and the traditions were important to Donna. Starting with Thanksgiving weekend, the Christmas trees were put up after dinner, the family went to the Candlelight Walk in Littleton on Black Friday and then also in general: shopping. It was always a game between her and Disa, to see who bought the first Christmas present of the year. Christmas was a massive event for the family, and there was never a year where anyone felt unloved or uncared for, no matter how small the budget was that year. There were many years of Cookie Day with family and Disa’s friends, making Empanaditas with her in-laws and watching all the Christmas movies with her husband and anyone else who happened to be around.

In recent years, her social life was mainly seeing her sister Sam, and niece Kellye for bible study, as close to every week as they could manage. She loved seeing Jim and Becky Medlock whenever there was the “Great Handoff” of the grandkids or on any weekend or weekday they could hang out. She became as close to them as non-blood related brothers and sisters could be.

In 2019, Donna and Mick moved out of their house of over 40 years, to have a house built in Castle Rock to move in with Disa, Jimmy, Xander and Joscelin. When no one mortally injured each other in the 6 months of living in a 3 bedroom 1900 sq ft apartment, they overcame all obstacles to successfully close on their house in March of 2020. Her last three years were rich with amazing memories that only being that close to family can bring. She loved having such a beautiful room in which to watch her TV, play on her phone, talk to family and look out the window down the street. She loved to call out “ears!” as she had to warn the whole house that she was about to grind ice in her blender, for her adored shaved ice.

Donna was a special presence in the lives of many people. She made best friends with the nurses, doctors and caregivers in the hospital during her final days. She was the kind of person who had special relationships even with the pharmacist at Kaiser, to the point of taking him special gifts for his children. You’ll never meet a more giving, kind, caring woman. She will be missed by all who knew her, and never forgotten.

Disa

A graveside service for Donna will be held Monday, May 8, 2023 at 9:00 AM at Bear Canon Cemetery, 397 S. Perry Park Road, Sedalia, CO 80135. Following the graveside service, a Celebration of Life Service will be held at 11:00 AM at Castle Rock United Methodist Church, 1200 South Street, Castle Rock, CO 80104. A reception will immediately follow services in the Church fellowship hall.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.OlingerAndrews.com for the Winger family.