Dona-Jean A. Souter

Dona-Jean Souter, known to all as Deej or D.J., aged 92, died Setember 30, 2019. She is survived by her children Sarah (Chuck) Ginebaugh and son, Tom Souter; and grandsons Brian and Scott Ginebaugh and Aaron and Sam Souter. She was predeceased by her husband, Don Souter, and her parents, Irene and Dan Palmatier. Other survivors include her sister, Pat (Jack) Stegmeier and several nieces and nephews. Born on August 11, 1927, Deej was a lifelong resident of Grand Rapids. She graduated from Creston High School, Grand Rapids Junior College, and Michigan State and then taught English and History at Grand Rapids Central High School from 1949-1959. She was very well-liked by her students, as was evidenced by the numerous class reunions to which she was invited over the years and by the fact that several former students showed up for her 90th birthday party in 2017!  After ten years of teaching, Deej became a stay-at-home mom, cultivating a family home where all the neighborhood kids congregated. She excelled at baking chocolate chip cookies, chocolate angel food cake, and making homemade ice cream. Deej’s passion was singing, and she was a soprano in the choir at Second Congregational United Church of Christ for 75 years where she was a frequent soloist. She also had leads in many musicals in high school and junior college. Deej was an accomplished seamstress, her favorite activity was tennis, and she maintained detailed scrap books and photo albums. Our family would like to thank the staffs of Boulder Creek Assisted Living and Kindred Hospice for their wonderful care and compassion for Mom.  Visitation will be held from 1-4pm on Sunday October 6th at the Metcalf & Jonkhoff Funeral Home, 4291 Cascade Rd. SE, Grand Rapids, MI 49546.  A memorial service honoring her life will be held at 11am on Monday October 7, 2019 at Second Congregational Church, 525 Cheshire Dr. NE, Grand Rapids, MI 49525 with visitation one hour prior to the service beginning at 10am.  In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Second Congregational UCC. 

To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Dona-Jean A. Souter, please visit our floral store.