Donna Claire Shetrone, age 89, died peacefully in her sleep on Friday, September 18, 2026, at her home in Georgetown, Texas, following a brief illness after an unexpected diagnosis of lung cancer.

Donna Claire Matthews was born April 13, 1937, in Hollister, California, to Ruth Ann Maginnis Matthews, a schoolteacher, and Warren Wayne Matthews, assistant to the chief engineer at the power utility company in Santa Cruz, California. She was the eldest of three children. She loved the outdoors and grew up camping with her parents, her brother Warren Wayne Jr., and her sister Janet. Donna was a go-getter from the start. In high school, she worked as a swimming instructor and lifeguard to earn money to make her own clothes. She attended UCLA, where she studied Home Economics, joined the Alpha Xi Delta Fraternity, and met her future husband, Harry Alvin Shetrone, a Geophysics student.

Harry and Donna married on June 8, 1958, before graduating from UCLA. Their first child, Leslie Deanne, was born in 1959 while they were still living in Los Angeles. After Harry joined a geophysical exploration crew, the young family spent three years moving among assignments in Louisiana, Nevada, South Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Mississippi. Their second child, Harry Warren, was born in Hattiesburg, Mississippi, in 1961.

In 1963, they moved to Adelaide, Australia, where Harry began exploring for oil and gas in the Outback. Shortly after their arrival, their third child, Sydney Lyn, was born in Glenelg. While in Australia, Donna and Harry played tennis regularly, enjoyed the beautiful beaches, and made lifelong friends, many of whom they remained in contact with after returning to the United States.

Their seven years Down Under also opened the door to a lifetime of travel. Donna and Harry explored Australia and traveled throughout Asia, the Pacific, the Middle East, Europe, and the Americas. Their fourth child, Matthew David, was born in North Adelaide in 1968. In the summer of 1969, the family returned to the United States and settled in Dallas, Texas, where Donna and Harry would spend the next 50 happy years raising their family and, eventually, retiring together.

Homemaking was Donna's life's work, and she brought enormous creativity and energy to it. She sewed her children's clothing and costumes and made furnishings for their home. She prepared wonderful meals, explored international cuisines, and hosted memorable costume parties for adults and children. In Australia, she introduced neighborhood children to American Halloween traditions such as trick-or-treating while enthusiastically embracing local celebrations such as Guy Fawkes Day.

Donna made experiences and adventures an important part of raising her family. As the children grew up, annual family vacations became a tradition, including summer trips to Red River, New Mexico, for trout fishing and square dancing and winter trips to the Rockies and Sierras for skiing. Donna and Harry shared a love of tennis, playing in leagues for exercise and enjoyment, and they made sure all four children learned both tennis and piano. Donna also served as both a Cub Scout and Girl Scout leader.

A teacher at heart, like her mother Ruth, Donna encouraged her children to excel in school and filled their lives with activities and experiences that broadened their horizons. When Matthew became interested in earning the Boy Scout Astronomy merit badge, Donna discovered that no one else in their Dallas-area Scout district was willing to serve as its Astronomy merit badge counselor, so she took on the role herself. That merit badge became one of Matthew's early introductions to astronomy and helped set him on a path that eventually led to a career as an astrophysicist. Donna took tremendous joy in her children's accomplishments and was immensely proud that all four earned college degrees and went on to build lives and careers of their own.

Donna brought creativity, skill, and enthusiasm to all her pursuits. A gifted seamstress and calligrapher, she designed and made her daughters' wedding gowns and hand-lettered their wedding correspondence. She delighted in cooking with herbs from her garden and arranging the flowers she grew, earning awards for her floral designs. In Dallas, she shared her love of gardening through years of leadership in the Shades of Green Garden Club and helped create a low-maintenance neighborhood park garden featuring native and well-adapted plants.

Donna and Harry also treasured opportunities to travel and reconnect with family. When two of their children moved overseas, they joyfully resumed the adventures they had loved as young parents, traveling to Europe, Egypt, Africa, Argentina, and Chile. At home, Donna reveled in hosting her grandchildren for swim parties and holiday celebrations at their Dallas home. One of Donna and Harry's happiest milestones was bringing the entire family together for a trip to Costa Rica to celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary.

In later years, family gatherings continued to bring Donna particular happiness. The family came together in Idaho for the total solar eclipse in 2017 and again in Texas for the total solar eclipse in 2024. In 2026, the family gathered once more to celebrate Harry's 90th birthday.

Donna and Harry moved to Sun City in Georgetown, Texas, in 2019. There, Donna eagerly expanded her sewing skills through special-interest groups, making COVID masks, microwave and oven heating pads, decorative table runners, and art quilts. Her flourishing hobby kept her busier than ever and brought her great joy, as well as many new friends. Among her remarkable quilts were vivid depictions of a mischievous cat, a reproduction of a California lighthouse, and a wine bottle pouring into a long-stemmed glass.

Donna is survived by Harry, her husband and companion of 68 years; her younger brother, Warren Matthews; and her four children: Leslie Smith and husband Elton, H. Warren Shetrone and wife Kate, Sydney Baker and husband Trent, and Matthew Shetrone and wife Susan. She is also survived by her grandchildren Morgan Smith, Reese Shetrone, Michael Baker, Kerri Shetrone, Nathaniel Smith, Laura Baker, and Helen Baker; and by her great-grandchild, Laurence Janda Baker.

Donna was preceded in death by her parents, Wayne and Ruth Matthews; her sister, Janet Nunes; and her grandsons, Hollis Smith and Eric Smith.

Her family will hold a private memorial service. The family also hopes to hold a memorial display of Donna's sewing and quilting in Sun City, celebrating a creative passion that brought her so much happiness in the final years of her life.