Dona Jean Potter

7/3/33 - 4/6/24 “Dona Jean” Potter met so many , traveled so far across the country , loved , lived , enjoyed life as much as possible. She didn’t want a funeral or anything so this will suffice even though she’d think it was too much. She had four sons from two marriages. Jack, Tommy and Gino Bell (first marriage Jack Bell) and myself (second marriage)13 years after Gino. She divorced my father when I was maybe two and has been unmarried since. Parents Fannie ( Tonti) and Gene ( Devenangio) and sister Patty ( 93 and still loving Jesus but excited to see sis she says). She loved her dogs , Harleys ( 82 Superglide and an 81 Heritage) , traveling the USA by semi truck for 35 years and averaged 300 days a year until the end. She met Jeff Koenig in 1987 when he hauled swinging meat out of Nebraska and they started team driving. They never married but Jeff is one the finest people you’ll ever meet. They were best friends, driving partners , arguing buddies and memory makers until last Saturday. Jeff never left her side during her cancer or end of life. He will forever be family. Their favorite movie was Tombstone and they both loved the west and all its history. When mom passed Jeff took one of their favorite lines from Tombstone and leaned in one last time to mom and said “ thanks for always being there Doc”. Linda Beechum was her best friend and Linda was such a good person to mom until the end and even after. I appreciate the care and time she showed sitting with mom at the end with Jeff. Mom was in Easyriders magazine in an article about women riding their own bikes rather than on back. Drove her big rig in a time when that was not a normal for women. Ran several bars and restaurants in a way that got respect from all her clients. She would go without so you could eat or dress decent.  We never had a lot but she made sure we had enough. I’ve never seen anyone work as hard as she would work and love doing it. She was basically bulletproof until maybe 15 years ago when cancer popped up the first time. She beat that and acted like it was nothing. Cancer came back in 2019 ( google Dona Potter Vanderbilt for her story) and Car- T Cell immunotherapy came calling to get her through that one. If you knew her then you knew the infectious love of life she had, heard her stories of traveling and no doubt how proud she was of her sons and grandchildren. To say she will be missed would be an unreal understatement but to make her passing other than a celebration would not be fair. She was nearly 91 and lived 99% of her life on her terms , she had a hazardous tough occupation for most of my life and I never had to get a call saying she was in horrible accident or lost to us too soon. Many have not had the opportunity I have had to talk with her through a few illnesses and say EVERYTHING a person would want and for that I’m forever grateful. The pain is real and it will fade but I’ll forever see her in so many places.  Mom you ran your race so many times and nobody will ever match your pace.