Lida Donatelli

AKRON- Lida M. Donatelli, 87, passed away peacefully on January 8 following a brief illness. Lida was born on March 30, 1929 in rural Georgia during the Great Depression. She was the fourth of five daughters of Joe and Mary Lancaster. The family relocated to Cuyahoga Falls in the early 1930s where Lida remained until marrying her sweetheart, Rudy Donatelli in 1946 and moving to Akron's North Hill, her home for the next 70 years. She was the matriarch of the family and that was everything to her. She loved spending holidays with the family and always had an open door for anyone who wanted to stop by and eat or have a beer. Neighbors and friends were part of the family and she welcomed everyone. Her other love was cheering on her grandkids in their sporting endeavors, dance and musical pursuits. She spent countless summer afternoons at the ballpark and loved every minute of it. She had a gift of making all of her grandkids and great-grandkids feel special and loved each and every one of them. The only thing more important than family to grandma was her faith. She was a longtime member of Blessed Trinity (St. Martha) Parish where she spent many hours in prayer, clutching her list of prayer intentions that she wanted to remember.

She was proud to be one of the first residents to move into St. Martha Manor Senior Apartments in 2008 and loved the fact that her new apartment was formerly a classroom where her children had been educated at St. Martha School. Living in a building attached to her church allowed her to get to Mass and prayer services almost daily which she truly loved. She made many friends at St. Martha Manor and enjoyed being a part of the community there. In her later years, she started walking through the neighborhood every day that the weather would allow. She developed her route and got to know many people in the neighborhood while out walking (and she was able to keep an eye on her former home at the corner of York and Marview). Everyone who met Lida loved her. She accepted everyone as they were and treated all like family.

Preceded in death by her parents, siblings, husband of 52 years Rudy, daughter, Judie Burkley, sons, Gary, David and John, she is survived by sons, Ronald (Ginger), Rudy and Tim (Diane), daughters-in-law, Kathy, Nancy and Pam and son-in-law, Charlie Burkley, 13 grandchildren, (Joe, Rose, David, Tony, Renee, Nick, Angelo, Sara, Dominic, Vince, Lori, Rudy and Rocco), 16 great-grandchildren, (Katie, Isaac, Demaya, Luke, Allison, Anthony, Morgan, Samantha, Avery, Davante, Demetrius, Lorenzo, Jackson, Santino, Vito, Amiyah) and great-great-grandson, Miles; many nieces, nephews and in-laws and the Schnell family, her former neighbors who were so dear to her.

Friends may call on Thursday, January 12 from 4:00-7:00 at the Clifford-Shoemaker Funeral Home, 1930 Front Street, Cuyahoga Falls, OH, 44221. Mass of Christian Burial 10:00 a.m. Friday, January 13 at Blessed Trinity (St. Martha) Church, 300 E. Tallmadge Ave., Akron, OH, 44310. Internment Chestnut Hill Memorial Park. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Blessed Trinity Parish for the Memorial Fund or Funeral Meal Program. Services entrusted to Clifford-Shoemaker Funeral Home and Crematory, 330-928-2147.

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