Our hearts are broken as we announce the sudden passing of Donna Marie Blackwell from a short battle with cancer, after a long and well-lived life. One of the original ‘valley girls’ she was born in the village of Grand Valley, grew-up on the family farm close to town, attended school, met her future husband at a dance in the Valley and built a new home together beside her parents farm. In her earlier years she attended and was married in Grand Valley’s Community of Christ congregation along the beautiful Grand River, and she was a long serving, dedicated volunteer of the Grand Valley Agricultural Society. She was a much-loved bus driver for a time, toting many students up and down the side roads to school, and later in life she worked for Erin Wellington Advisory Group, spreading her special kind of care and compassion with that community. Through all these chapters in her life, she met, cherished, and valued many friends, family, and neighbours. So much so that she never really felt the need to travel far, she had all she needed in the spaces and places she called home. Donna was a bit of a homebody, she valued the comfort and familiarity that only home can provide, and she excelled at making anyone feel at home. An exceptional daughter, sister, friend, aunt, grandma, and most of all mom, her house was the centre of the universe for her family, and she passed along to her daughters and grandchildren the value of spending time together, which we did a lot. Her home was her heaven on earth, she loved being there, raising kids and umpteen pets of all kinds. Her kitchen was well-loved – she was an amazing cook, though too humble to say so. Food was truly one of her favourite ways to give love and she ensured you were always full. An early riser, she made the most of every day, never idle, hard-working, often busy at something that would benefit others, rarely herself. Donna loved to watch wild birds at the feeders, which she would fill each morning as the sun came up, always accompanied by a family dog of which she had many, and when the day ended you could find her on the back patio, looking out over the farm and fields. Donna was a resourceful, compassionate, private, trustworthy, fair, warm-hearted, and kind woman who rarely had an ill word to say about anyone, extremely empathetic and often ready to lend a hand to friend or stranger. She had warm brown eyes and hard-working hands; she didn’t wear make-up but never left the house without putting on her favourite shade of lipstick. She was a great dancer and a good listener; she loved baby ducks and had a soft spot for kittens and cats just like her mom and her brother. Donna loved flowers, especially coral-coloured roses, hummingbirds, and sparrows were her favourites. She loved a walk in the woods, had a smile that made strangers feel they were immediate friends, she was the calm in any storm, and she was special. If she could have, she would have loved to stay a little longer and have a few more moments with everyone. One last chat, one more visit, one more day with her many friends, family, and her girls. Donna was called home on June 6, 2025, we are sure they rejoiced in her return, she was an angel on earth, and Heaven would never be Heaven without her. Donna was preceded by her loving parents Howard and Hazel (Taylor) Graham, her husband Ken Blackwell, brother Ralph Graham, and her parents in-laws Ken and Catherine Blackwell. She is survived by daughter Heather and husband John and their children Ruby and Jaden, Beverly and husband Tony and their sons Dylan and Nicholas, Amy and husband Peter and children Corbin and Emma, sister in laws Ollie Graham and niece and nephew Julie and Dave, and Margaret (Blackwell) Pugh, her husband Hugh and nieces Charlene and Diane. A Memorial Service will be held at In Memoriam Funeral Services Inc (28 Main Street N, Grand Valley ON), on Saturday, June 21, 2025. Visitation will begin at 11am, service at 12pm, with lunch to follow. In lieu of flowers donations can be made to Bethell House Hospice or the Canadian Cancer Society.
Those we hold most dear, never truly leave us. They live on in the kindness they showed, the comfort they shared, and the love they brought into our lives.
Online condolences can be made at www.imfunerals.com. In Memoriam Funeral Services Inc. has been given the honour of serving the Blackwell Family.