Donna Mary Hoing

Donna Mary Hoing passed away at the age of 69, on Sunday August 27th, 2023 at Hospice of the Valley in Phoenix, Arizona with her children and sister by her side.

She was born on March 13th, 1954 in Sioux City, Iowa to Martha and Frank Skuodas. She graduated from Bishop Heelan Catholic High School in 1972. On October 21, 1972 she and Rick Popken were married and blessed with 3 children, Rae Terese, Joy and Cody. The eldest child, Rae Terese was stillborn in March 21, 1973.

Donna and Rick followed Rick’s employment with the IBP plant from Iowa to Colorado, then Colorado to Texas, back to Sioux City Iowa and ended up living at the Overton Golf Course and working in Lexington in 1991. Upon arriving in Lexington, she became a part of the Quality Control Department of IBP (Tyson). She was driven, determined and had a strong work ethic. These qualities led to her becoming a top performer in her position at Tyson. Her demand for excellence and attention to detail in this area extended to her personal life and projects as well. She found much satisfaction in her 20+ years at the plant, earning the nickname Mama Donna with her coworkers. Her marriage to Rick ended in divorce.

Donna then moved to Johnson Lake, Nebraska where she spent much of her time on the deck, near the water and enjoying her time. She was ambitious and loved DIY, renovating her home, and creating a beautiful space in her yard. She always had a project that she was working on and could and would do anything that she set her mind to.

In 2011, Donna moved to Phoenix Arizona to be near her sister Lucy. They spent their time thrifting, exploring nearby towns like Sedona, Prescott, and Jerome, volunteering at the local food pantry, and dancing whenever they could. They got tattoos in Las Vegas together, enjoyed food from Oktoberfest and Greekfest, and biked as far as 50 miles at times. They had holiday traditions as well. Halloween was especially fun for both of them because they loved dressing up and going out in elaborate costumes (thrifted of course). Christmas was always a movie and Chinese food and Mother’s Day was spent at the historic town on the Apache Trail, Tortilla Flat.

Donna loved her neighborhood of Sun City, because everything you could possibly want or need was nearby and the opportunity to get a great deal at a thrift store or garage sale was never far away. She also worked to remodel her condo with little to no help, installing tile, putting in fixtures, painting and even epoxy coating her garage floor on her own, much to the family’s dismay. She was detail oriented and meticulous, ensuring that everything was done precisely to her standards, literally from floor to ceiling.

She is survived by her children, Joy (Jerrod) Gray of Lexington, and Cody (Brandy) Popken of Lexington; her sisters and brothers, Lucy Connor of Phoenix Arizona, George (Vicki) Skuodas of Lincoln, Vida (Greg) Eden of Lincoln, and Vic Skuodas of Sioux City Iowa; grandchildren, Kamryn Pike, Kinley Popken and Declan Gray; sisters-in-law, Donna Skuodas of Sioux City, Iowa and Olwen Skuodas of Australia; as well as numerous nieces, nephews, extended family and friends.

Besides her parents, Donna was preceded in death by her daughter, Rae Terese; siblings, Leon Skuodas, Birdie Fox, Bruno Skuodas, Alfred Skuodas and Wanda Skuodas.

A Celebration Of Life Service will be held on Saturday, November 4, 2023 at 11:00 a.m. at Reynolds-Love Funeral Home in Lexington.

There will be no visitation, as the family is honoring Donna’s wish for cremation.

A memorial has been established in honor of Donna’s love of thrifting and are kindly suggested to the Crossroads Mission in Lexington.

Reynolds-Love Funeral Home in Lexington is honored to be assisting the family with arrangements.  Please share online condolences with the family by visiting: reynoldslovefuneralhome.com