A Life of Adventure & Generosity

Donna West ’76 is actively retired from a fulfilling and varied career with the United States Department of Agriculture, where she worked in the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service. Putting her St. Mary’s College degree in biology to good use, Donna’s federal service took her around the world and included postings as the Port Director at Washington Dulles International Airport and National Canine Program Manager. Donna enjoys world travel, epicurean adventures and spending quality time with her husband, Roger, and friends in lower, slower, Delaware. A lover of the theatre, Donna also serves on the board of directors of the Clear Space Theatre Company, a performing arts organization located in downtown Rehoboth Beach.

St. Mary’s College has long held a special place in Donna’s heart, and in the past she held posts on the school’s Alumni Council. In 2016, Donna established the Donna L. West Endowed Scholarship Fund to support St. Mary’s College students with financial need who are majoring in environmental science or biology. Donna’s scholarship is already making an impact – her first recipient had this to say:

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Melinda Grant ’19 Majoring in English and Environmental Studies

“The scholarship has taken some of the burden off of my dad and my family as a whole, which has in turn eased my own mind.  I can focus better on my studies and on the future.”

For the past several years Donna has been active in the College’s Giving Tuesday efforts by making challenges and inspiring her beloved 1970s alumni cohort to participate.  This year, Donna is once again generously donating $5,000 and encourages all alumni, especially the 1970s alumni to open their hearts and purse strings to support St. Mary’s College.  To this end, Donna wants to remind her alumni cohort that gifts can be made to honor the memory of passed classmates and friends through the Robert Thornton 1970s Alumni Memorial Scholarship Fund.