Donna Johnson

Donna Mae (Tschida) Johnson, age 84 of Melrose, died peacefully on Tuesday, January 3, 2012 at the Pine Villa Care Center in Melrose, Minnesota.

Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 11 a.m. Friday, January 6 at St. Mary's Catholic Church in Melrose. Rev. Marvin Enneking will officiate with Rev. Ken Thielman concelebrating. Interment will be at St. Francis of Assisi Cemetery in St. Francis following the lunch.

Friends may call from 4 to 8 p.m. Thursday and from 8 to 10:30 a.m. Friday at the Patton-Schad Funeral Home in Melrose. Parish prayers will be at 5 p.m. followed by the Christian Mothers and the Schanhaar-Otte VFW Post 7050 Auxiliary at 7 p.m. Thursday evening at the funeral home.

Donna Mae Wiener was born April 2, 1927 in Sauk Centre, Minnesota to Bernard and Mary (Riesner) Wiener. On October 7, 1947 she married Virgil Tschida at St. Paul's Catholic Church in Sauk Centre. The couple farmed near St. Francis until March of 1978 when Virgil passed away. Donna Mae continued farming for one more year until moving to Melrose. She was a homemaker for many years and then began working as a home health aide for Stearns County, retiring in 1998. On August 12, 2000 she married Albert Johnson at St. Mary's Catholic Church in Melrose. Albert passed away in October of 2001.

She was a member of St. Mary's Catholic Church in Melrose, Christian Mothers, and the Schanhaar-Otte VFW Post 7050 Auxiliary. Donna enjoyed quilting, making macramé pot holders, painting ceramics, gardening, and canning. She was a very good cook and baker.

Survivors include her children, Mary Lou (Ron) Pogatchnik of Clifton, Colorado, David (Mary) Tschida of Melrose, Kenneth (Shirley) Tschida of St. Rosa, Diane (David) Kroll of Sauk Rapids, Darrell (Patti) Tschida of Willmar, Cheryl (John) Zwack of Sartell, Donald (Michele) Tschida of Long Prairie, Joseph (Jackie) Tschida of Melrose, Janice "Jan" (Rick) Ostendorf of Alvarado, Texas, Jeffrey (Char) Tschida of Melrose, and Greg (Julie) Tschida of Melrose; daughter-in-law, Wanda Tschida of Fergus Falls; 40 grandchildren and 42 great-grandchildren; brothers and sisters, Leo (Toni) Wiener of Sauk Centre, Ronald Wiener of New York, Bernice Johnson of Sauk Centre, and Joan (Richard) Kortan of Sauk Centre; and brother-in-law, Walter Broermann of Melrose.

Donna Mae was preceded in death by her husbands, Virgil Tschida on March 7, 1978 and Albert Johnson on October 5, 2001; son, Gerald Tschida; grandsons, Cameron Tschida, Keith Pogatchnik, and Brent Zwack; brother, Robert Wiener; sister, Alice Broermann; sister-in-law, Marion Wiener; and brother-in-law, LeRoy Johnson.

Serving as casket bearers will be Kenneth, Darrell, Donald, Joseph, Jeffrey, and Gregory Tschida. Cross bearer will be David Tschida and scripture bearer will be Mary Lou Pogatchnik. Gift bearers will be Diane Kroll, Cheryl Zwack, and Janice Ostendorf.