Irene Donlan

September 25, 1941 - May 8, 2020

Irene Donlan did not live nearly long enough for us but she lived a life of love, laughter, and kindness. Born in Philadelphia, she always had a deep love for her hometown and for traveling far and near. She loved Nova Scotia, San Francisco, Napa, and Graceland but was not at all impressed with Vegas. (She was fond of saying, “Why bother when we can go to Atlantic City?”) Irene had mad crochet skills and found great joy in making hats for cancer patients and blankets and Christmas stockings for the homeless shelters and local veterans organizations. Her favorite thing to crochet was baby blankets, and many, many babies were lucky recipients of her labors of love. If you ever paid her a visit, chances are she’d be watching NCIS, Hallmark movies, or any of the Real Housewives iterations. An avid reader, she would devour anything relating to the Kennedys, Lincoln, or the Royal Family, and enjoyed thrillers and spy stories. She loved the Phillies, rom-coms, Elvis, Neil Diamond, and Sean Connery. Oh, how she loved Sean Connery.

Irene was the neighborhood mom who could always be counted on to babysit at a moment’s notice; run errands for you; or take care of you if you were sick or just needed a hand. She volunteered often at her daughter’s grade school (and relished telling tall tales about her), and she never said no to hosting parties or random gatherings in the backyard or basement. She was famous for her golumpki and pierogi and would feed anyone and everyone who stopped by. She was still feeding people near the end and would share leftovers with the wildlife who lived in the woods outside her condo.
Irene was preceded in death by her husband, Joseph. She was devoted to her nieces (Drissteen, Charlene, Edie, and Judy); her nephews (Eddie, Roger, Cole, Hunter, and Yardley); and her brother, John, and his wife, Barbara. She never believed you needed blood to be family and treasured her friendships with Joyce and her husband, Bill; Bob and Rose, who were part of her village at Belmont Station; and her circle of friends at the Ben Wilson Senior Center.

Irene deeply loved her daughter, Lisa, to whom she passed down her appreciation for Elvis, Broadway musicals, and the importance of good skincare; her son-in-law, Jerry; and especially her grandsons, Markus and Vincent, who were her greatest joy.

We will gather at a later date to celebrate her memory.