Juanita Baldree Donovan, top salesperson
Juanita Baldree Donovan, 84. of Milford, passed from this life at home with family after a short illness Tuesday, Sept. 13, 2011.
Juanita was born in Williston, Fla. along with her twin brother, Dr. J. Martin Baldree (deceased) to parents Jasper Martin and Lasiephene Missouri Baldree (both deceased) Feb. 4, 1927. As a child she lived in Wimauma, Tarpon Springs, Arcadia, and McCleaney, Fla., moving to Montgomery, Ala. as a teen and then on to Sevierville, Tenn., where she met her husband Leon E. Donovan (deceased) from Milford at BTS, which later became Lee University in Cleveland, Tenn., where Leon and Juanita were married in 1948.
The couple had a southern gospel radio show in Nashville in the late 1940s where Juanita worked for the Presbyterian Church in America Media Office. After a short move to Missouri, Juanita and Leon moved to Milford. Juanita had a number of jobs in Milford, including mosquito control, Milford Pharmacy, Coopersmiths, Dairy Queen (Jimmy Downham), Milford Hardware and then settling at Leggett’s Department Store for over 20 years where she was one of the top five salespersons in the chain, followed by a period at Vernon Powell.
She had been an active bowler, participating in as many as five leagues at one time in her life. Juanita was a member of Milford Church of God, where she had served as christian education director, cradle role administrator, youth leader, choir director and served as organist for over 40 years. She also maintained an extended church family birthday list and called over 200 people a year on their birthdays to sing and wish them well, continuing to do so long after the people stopped attending her church. She also was musician for church services at what is now Milford Service Center for over 10 years. After Leon’s death she moved to Lewes and attended Bethel United Methodist Church as well as St. Peter’s Episcopal Church.
Juanita was legally Native American as a Cherokee, but also was a descendant of several members of the Seminole Tribe.
She is survived by her two sons, Dr. Jan E Donovan and his wife Pamela of Villa Park, Ill. and Dean B. Donovan and his life partner William Lucks of Lewes; daughter-in-law Paula Donovan of Millsboro; three grandchildren: Tiffany Walter and her husband Stephen, of Milford, Jana Nulik and her husband Jeremy of O’Fallen, Mo. and Paul-Michael Donovan, of Lewes; five great-grandchildren, Isabelle, William and Benjamin Walter of Milford and Jordan Hummerich and Sedona Nulik, of O’Fallen, Mo. She is also survived by: four stepgrandchildren; two stepgreat-grandchildren (Joey Byrne having visited her several times in Lewes), sister-in-law, Cathel Tanner and her husband Charlie of Magnolia; niece Tanya and her husband Dr. Michael Mazolinni, of Cleveland, Tenn.; and a nephew, Jon Baldree and his wife Betsy, of Greenville, S.C.
Funeral services will be held at 1 p.m., Saturday, Sept. 17, in the chapel of Berry-Short Funeral Home, 119 NW Front St., Milford, where friends may visit the family starting at 11 a.m. Burial will be in Milford Community Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Delaware Music School, PO Box 442, Milford, DE 19963. Arrangements by Berry-Short Funeral Home.
