Donna Lee Kersey

Donna Lee Kersey (née Anderson), 90, of New Brighton, MN passed away peacefully on November 7th, 2025, surrounded by loved ones.
Donna was born on August 27th, 1935 in Minneapolis, MN, the daughter of Robert Anderson and Aileen Sipes. She moved frequently, spending her youth in Maple Plain, Fifty Lakes, Brainerd, Minneapolis, Bloomington, Mound and Orono alongside five brothers: Jerry, Jimmy, Johnny, Doug and Lowell.
Donna met the love of her life and future husband Tay in 1953 while working at Dayton's Skyroom in Minneapolis. A few months after graduating high school, the two eloped three months later at the ages of 18 and 17. They gave birth to a baby girl, Diane, in 1954.
Donna pursued an education at Saint Paul Bible College where she and Tay studied foreign missions. During their time in school, she gave birth to their daughter Cheryl (1958) and son Kent (1959). Following Tay's graduation in 1961, they began fundraising for their mission trip to the Philippines, where she and Tay faithfully served the Lord for nearly a decade.
With three young children in tow, Donna courageously relocated the family from Minneapolis to Manila in 1963, where Tay had been waiting to receive them. They taught there for the next nine years, living and speaking Tagalog fluently like the locals. She gave birth to their two youngest children --- a son Daniel (1964) and a daughter Loralee (1966) during that time.
They moved back to the United States in 1972, residing in New Brighton, MN where they raised their family for the next three years. From 1976-1978, they relocated again to Disputanta, Virginia, where Tay served as a pastor for a rural church and Donna taught Sunday school. In 1979, the family moved back to Minnesota where they purchased their forever home in Mounds View, MN.
Over the next twenty years, Donna held various jobs, such as Sunday school teacher, pianist/organist, nurse, newspaper secretary, florist and scheduler for the family tax business. In her retirement years, Donna enjoyed building her eBay and Amazon book reselling business, using the profits to send her grandkids to summer camp and to contribute toward their college textbook costs.
Donna and Tay were enthusiastic travel buffs, enjoying vacations together and with their family. Some of their most noteworthy adventures included international trips to China, France, England and Ireland, though they also enjoyed road-tripping cross-country to Branson, Alaska, many National Parks, and numerous CCCC conferences with their grandkids.
When not working or traveling, Donna ran "Grandma's Daycare Service" to many grandkids, toting them to the beach, the zoo, museums and garage sales. She loved card games like Canasta, Solitaire, Bezique and Rook, baking, gardening, and watching Wheel of Fortune with Tay. She was a devoted servant of the Lord and volunteered her time at church most weeks. Her home was always welcome to all-friends, partners, coworkers, neighbors, and she loved hosting holiday gatherings and making her famous chili for football Sundays.
Donna was a loving daughter, sister, wife, aunt, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, great-great-grandmother, who cared for her family lovingly and dutifully. She was widely respected for her pioneering spirit, her faith, her kindness and her service to others. Among her loved ones, she was also known (endearingly) to exaggerate, tell wildly inventive bedtime stories, and stick her tongue out at you if you played a better word than her in Scrabble.
Donna is survived by her children Cheryl Marshall, Kent (Mayka) Kersey, Daniel (Maggie) Kersey and Loralee (Daniel) Berle; 16 grandchildren; 19 great-grandchildren; and two great-great-grandchildren. She was preceded in death by her parents, Robert Anderson and Aileen Sipes, brothers Jerry, Jonny, Doug and Lowell, husband Tay and daughter Diane.
Donna was an incredible woman whose love and impact spanned continents and generations. Please join us in remembering and celebrating her full and blessed life; she will be greatly missed by all those who knew her.
A Celebration of Life for Donna will be held on November 21st, 2025 at 10:00 AM at the Valley of Peace Lutheran Church, 4735 Bassett Creek Drive, Golden Valley, MN 55422.