Sr. Donna Mae Venteicher FSPA

Sister Donna Mae Venteicher, age 90, passed away on Thursday, July 30, 2026, at Mayo Clinic Health System, La Crosse, Wisconsin. She was in the sixty-ninth year of her religious profession.

Mass of the Christian Burial will be celebrated at 10:30 A.M. on Tuesday, August 18, 2026, at St. Mary Church – St. John Paul II Parish in Willey with Fr. Merlin Schrad as Celebrant and Fr. Patrick Behm and Fr. Jim Tigges as Concelebrants. Music for the Mass will be by Jane Heithoff, the St. Mary Choir, Leah Storey, and Alexa Storey. Lector for the Mass will be Tricia Storey. Gift bearers will be Andrew Klocke and Lauren Klocke. Mass servers will be Karli Kautzky and Kailee Kautzky. Burial will be in Mt. Olivet Cemetery in Carroll following the luncheon.

Visitation will be held Tuesday morning from 9:00 -10:15 A.M. prior to the Mass at the church.

In lieu of flowers, memorials are preferred to the family for a later designation.

Funeral arrangements are under the direction of the Dahn and Woodhouse Funeral Home in Carroll and online condolences may be left for the family at www.dahnandwoodhouse.com

Donna Mae Catherine Venteicher was born at home in Willey, Iowa, to Albert and Leona (Janning) Venteicher on March 4, 1936. She and her seven siblings grew up on the family farm outside Willey. After grade school, she worked at home for a year before entering St. Angela Academy in Carroll, Iowa. She worked nights at St. Anthony Hospital in Carroll during her years at St. Angela. In 1953, Donna Mae joined the Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration, where she completed her high school at St. Rose High School in La Crosse.

Donna Mae was received into the novitiate on August 12, 1956, and was given the name Sister Leona. She later returned to her baptismal name. She made her first profession of vows on August 12, 1957.

Sister Donna Mae began her ministry with FSPA as a homemaker in Milford, Iowa, and Bellevue, Iowa. Her managerial skills were immediately recognized. She served as food service manager at Sacred Heart Hospital in Idaho Falls, Idaho, for two years and at St. Anthony Hospital in Carroll from 1963 to 1973. She then attended Des Moines Community College, where she earned an AA degree in Health Care Administration. From there, she moved into nursing home administration, serving at Fort Madison Health Center Nursing Home as director, corporate administrator, and director of human resources from 1975 to 1996 in Fort Madison, Iowa. Her next position was a long-term care administrator at Monticello Nursing & Rehab Center in Monticello, Iowa, from 1996 to 2004. Upon retiring from healthcare administration, Sister Donna Mae continued using her administrative skills as the manager of Walnut Acres Trailer Park from 2004 to 2026. For one year (2011-2012), Sister Donna Mae also served as co-director of Prairiewoods Franciscan Spirituality Center in Hiawatha, Iowa.

Sister Donna Mae is remembered by family, community members and friends as a person who loved life to the fullest. She is known to be “a practical, down-to-earth FSPA who possessed a wonderful combination of gifts that include meeting people with a friendly smile and an ability to laugh.” Her administrative skills and love for all involved in eldercare was outstanding. She was always concerned for the safety and growth of those in her charge, whether residents or staff. Team building and communication, along with management and marketing, are gifts she brought to her ministry and numerous boards and committees within and outside of FSPA.

Sister Donna Mae is survived by her Franciscan community, her brothers: Roland (Diane) of Carroll, Iowa; Linus (Margaret) of Corning, Iowa; Allen of Massena, Iowa; and Vernon of Brayton, Iowa; and her sister Joleen Klocke of Carroll, Iowa; and numerous nieces and nephews.

She was preceded in death by her parents and her sisters, Sister Albert Marie, FSPA, and Annette Haverman.