Donna Fells

Donna Fells, age 84, of Arcadia, Nebraska died Wednesday February 18th, 2015 at Bryan LGH East in Lincoln, Nebraska. Funeral services will be held Monday February 23, 2015 at 2 p.m. in the United Methodist Church in Arcadia with Rev. Jeff Hale and Rev. Glenda Ferguson officiating. Visitation will be Sunday 5 to 7p.m. at the United Methodist Church in Arcadia, and Monday prior to service time in the Church at Arcadia. Burial will be in the Arcadia Cemetery. Govier Brothers Mortuary is in charge of arrangements. Donna was born on September 12, 1930, to Jake and Oril (Sell) Greenland in Arcadia. Her entire life, with the exception of college and the last 4 months of her life, was spent living in rural Arcadia. Growing up, she attended school in Arcadia, sometimes staying with her Grandmother Greenland, when the family lived further from town. When they moved closer to Arcadia, her parents operated Greenland Dairy, so Donna learned the value of hard work early in life. She often told of leaving early for school, her bicycle basket loaded with bottles of milk, to be delivered before she went to school. She was a good student, graduating near the top of her class from Arcadia High School in 1949. She went on to attend Hastings College for 2 years, studying music and education. By that time, “money was getting tight” and Donna had other plans with a fella named Bob. On August 14, 1953, Donna married Robert (Bob) Fells at her parents’ home near Arcadia. The couple moved to a farm southwest of Arcadia. In addition to the many duties of a farm wife, Donna began her teaching career at Arcadia in the elementary grades. Donna and Bob raised three children on their farm, instilling in them the values of hard work, and commitment to family, faith, and patriotism. Donna continued to teach school when she wasn’t raising her own young children. In addition to teaching in Arcadia, she taught elementary music in Rockville and Ashton, one room country school at Pleasant Valley, north of Arcadia, and finally at Westerville. She was thorough and creative with her lessons, caring most about whether the student was mastering the material, not about whether they had finished the entire textbook by the end of the year. She continued to take summer classes at Kearney State College, with the goal of completing her four year degree. She accomplished that goal in December of 1978 with a degree in Elementary Education and a minor in Music. In recent years, when former students told her, “you were the best music teacher I ever had,” she absolutely beamed! (of course, she denied that it was true) After her son, John, was injured in a farm accident, Donna relinquished her teaching career to help rehabilitate him. She immersed herself in learning about farm management and grain marketing so she could help him keep his farm going. She used various extension workshops and regularly attended the Women In Ag conference, until her health prevented it, to achieve this goal. Family was always first with Donna. But she was also devoted to her community and helping in any way she could. She was a member of the Arcadia United Methodist Church, and a lifetime member of the Arcadia American Legion Auxiliary. In her younger years, she marched in the Auxiliary Color Guard. She was generous with her time and her donations, sometimes giving anonymously to avoid the spotlight. In recent years, as her health caused more problems, she was forced to stay home more. She treasured visits from her granddaughters, chatting with her daughters, rides to McDonalds with John, and hearing from, or seeing friends. Until the very end of her life, she continued to teach her children and her grandchildren by the way she handled the difficult positions God placed her in….with unbelievable toughness, quiet bravery, and a touch of humor. Donna is survived by her husband of 61 years, Bob Fells, and by her children: Jeanne Fells and John Fells of Arcadia, and Jo Fells Heyen (husband Stan) of Ceresco, and grandchildren: Katie and Jessi Heyen of Ceresco. She is also survived by her sister, Hollis (Dutch) Hunt of Arcadia. She was preceded in death by her parents, and a brother-in-law, Kenneth Hunt.