Obituary for Donna Blanche Krueger (Laes)
Donna B. Krueger (Laes)
On Tuesday, December 27, 2022, Donna Blanche Krueger (Laes) passed away
after suffering multiple cardiac arrests at the age of 67. She was in the presence
of her son Matthew, daughter-in-law Shannon, and daughter Becky at time of
passing. Donna was the daughter of Donald Laes and Mary Laes (Michalski), wife
of the late Danny Krueger, sister of the late Jodi Bergant (Laes) and late James
Laes, aunt of Mary Bielefeld, mother-in-law of Joshua Molnar, grandmother
(nicknamed “G-ma”) of Matthew, Chloe, Corbin, Brett, and Pearl, and dear friend
to many. Donna passed away at the same age as her late husband, Danny
Krueger, whom she married at the age of 17. Together, they moved to the Scott
Air Force Base in Southern Illinois, and from there moved to Milwaukee,
Wisconsin. Donna received her paralegal certification through the American
Institute for Paralegal Studies. Donna worked for nearly 40 years as a legal
secretary at many firms in the Milwaukee area, including Quarles and Brady LLP
(1985-1988), Kravit, Waisbren, & DeBruin S.C. (1988-1992), Hale and Wagner
S.C. (1992-2005), Previant Law Firm, Foley and Lardner LLP (2005-2006),
Leverson Lucey & Metz S.C (2007-2020), and Steinhilber Swanson (2020-2022).
During her career she was the Director of First Impressions at several firms. She
was the first welcoming face clients would see, multitasking in a sea of files, all
with a smile, kind words, and a bowl full of peppermints on her desk. Donna grew
up in the Nazarene church and in recent years regularly attended services at
Layton Avenue Baptist Church. She taught Sunday School and loved to sing in the
choir. Donna was a persistent woman; persistent in the way she loved, cared for,
worked for, and adored those around her, especially her menagerie of pets. Donna
could take you to any of her favorite restaurants and name several servers there,
who also knew Donna by name, and ask them how their family and pets were.
Donna often hosted Sunday lunches for friends and family. There would always
be at least two kinds of meat, Bob Evan’s mashed potatoes, and mac and cheese.
She loved her designer purses, which were mostly Coach, that contained at least
two packets of gum or Altoids, a hair pick for her perm, and a crisp $10 bill that
she would hand out to one of her grandchildren to see who could clean the
kitchen the fastest after lunch. When you sat in her recliner by the television,
you could open the arm rest and find a stash of snacks and candies where the
remote should be, but never be able to find the remote itself. The jingle of her
jewelry could be heard 100 feet away, and the sparkle in her smile could be seen
100 miles away. Donna was never further than an arm’s reach away from a hug
in a conversation; she will forever reside in the hearts of all who met her and
were blessed to hear her contagious laughter and wisdom.
Thank you to the staff of St. Luke’s Coronary Intensive Care Unit and the ER/
First Responders who cared for Donna in her last moments.
The Memorial for Donna will be held at Layton Avenue Baptist Church located at
9600 W Layton Avenue, Greenfield, Wisconsin on Saturday, January 21st, 2023.
Visitation is from 11am-1pm. Service is at 1pm, and food to follow. As Donna
would say, “We don’t meet unless we eat!” Thank you all for hearing and being a
part of Donna B. Krueger’s story
On Tuesday, December 27, 2022, Donna Blanche Krueger (Laes) passed away
after suffering multiple cardiac arrests at the age of 67. She was in the presence
of her son Matthew, daughter-in-law Shannon, and daughter Becky at time of
passing. Donna was the daughter of Donald Laes and Mary Laes (Michalski), wife
of the late Danny Krueger, sister of the late Jodi Bergant (Laes) and late James
Laes, aunt of Mary Bielefeld, mother-in-law of Joshua Molnar, grandmother
(nicknamed “G-ma”) of Matthew, Chloe, Corbin, Brett, and Pearl, and dear friend
to many. Donna passed away at the same age as her late husband, Danny
Krueger, whom she married at the age of 17. Together, they moved to the Scott
Air Force Base in Southern Illinois, and from there moved to Milwaukee,
Wisconsin. Donna received her paralegal certification through the American
Institute for Paralegal Studies. Donna worked for nearly 40 years as a legal
secretary at many firms in the Milwaukee area, including Quarles and Brady LLP
(1985-1988), Kravit, Waisbren, & DeBruin S.C. (1988-1992), Hale and Wagner
S.C. (1992-2005), Previant Law Firm, Foley and Lardner LLP (2005-2006),
Leverson Lucey & Metz S.C (2007-2020), and Steinhilber Swanson (2020-2022).
During her career she was the Director of First Impressions at several firms. She
was the first welcoming face clients would see, multitasking in a sea of files, all
with a smile, kind words, and a bowl full of peppermints on her desk. Donna grew
up in the Nazarene church and in recent years regularly attended services at
Layton Avenue Baptist Church. She taught Sunday School and loved to sing in the
choir. Donna was a persistent woman; persistent in the way she loved, cared for,
worked for, and adored those around her, especially her menagerie of pets. Donna
could take you to any of her favorite restaurants and name several servers there,
who also knew Donna by name, and ask them how their family and pets were.
Donna often hosted Sunday lunches for friends and family. There would always
be at least two kinds of meat, Bob Evan’s mashed potatoes, and mac and cheese.
She loved her designer purses, which were mostly Coach, that contained at least
two packets of gum or Altoids, a hair pick for her perm, and a crisp $10 bill that
she would hand out to one of her grandchildren to see who could clean the
kitchen the fastest after lunch. When you sat in her recliner by the television,
you could open the arm rest and find a stash of snacks and candies where the
remote should be, but never be able to find the remote itself. The jingle of her
jewelry could be heard 100 feet away, and the sparkle in her smile could be seen
100 miles away. Donna was never further than an arm’s reach away from a hug
in a conversation; she will forever reside in the hearts of all who met her and
were blessed to hear her contagious laughter and wisdom.
Thank you to the staff of St. Luke’s Coronary Intensive Care Unit and the ER/
First Responders who cared for Donna in her last moments.
The Memorial for Donna will be held at Layton Avenue Baptist Church located at
9600 W Layton Avenue, Greenfield, Wisconsin on Saturday, January 21st, 2023.
Visitation is from 11am-1pm. Service is at 1pm, and food to follow. As Donna
would say, “We don’t meet unless we eat!” Thank you all for hearing and being a
part of Donna B. Krueger’s story