Donna Conrad is a quiet woman who likes to work behind the scenes. She’s been serving the Michigan District, LCMS since 1996, most of that time as an administrative assistant in the Business Office.
Donna used to work at a dairy establishment in Adrian, but when that closed, she decided to stay home and raise her daughter. Since her family lived on a farm, Donna and her husband Mark decided to raise sheep as a hobby business—they would sell them for meat and would also sell lambs to the 4H kids.
Once her daughter grew up, Donna started working part-time as church secretary at Emmanuel, Britton. One day she saw that the District Office was looking for a receptionist and applied, and the rest is history. She always did some of the accounting part of the job, even while she was a receptionist, but, she says, “I was glad when I stopped being the receptionist. I don’t think I was a good [one], because I’m not outgoing.” She likes to stay busy, and her favorite part of the job is “receipts and payables because they’re routine but also always different.”
Her affinity with routine would become apparent during staff meetings, when employees would go around the table reporting what tasks they were up to. Invariably, Donna would shrug and say, “The usual.” This always brought chuckles, but also emphasized the constancy she provided by performing the same tasks day in and day out and keeping things moving.
When asked about the best times and the worst times, Donna says the Covid year was the worst. She held down the fort at the District Office, working in the building all by herself. She says there were advantages to it, but it was also very lonely. In contrast, her favorite memories are from being a part of convention and the all-church-worker conferences: “That was fun,” she said.
Reflecting on her 28 years at the District office, she remarks: “It’s been a good job. I’m not outgoing or anything, so working here I feel that I have done something [for the Kingdom].”
Donna was honored during the staff Christmas party on December 13. Her husband couldn’t attend due to illness, but her grandson Nick came with her.
Friend and coworker Jennifer Rumberger, from the Education office, came up with a list of little-known facts about Donna which delighted her coworkers:
Did you know? Donna…
- Knows all the congregation OID (database) numbers by heart
- Is the fastest mailing stuffer on the planet
- Has way more computer knowledge than she lets on
- Never leaves a shelf empty, as she’ll never get it back
- Is an adjunct member of the Education office—she’s an expert in title funds, MANS dues, NLSA fees, Hearts for Jesus, and getting schools to pay invoices
- Can fit into a recycling bin, as she fell into one during a convention mailing!
Chad Woltemath, the Michigan District VP of Finance and Donna’s supervisor, also shared some words: “When I arrived a couple years after Donna as ‘District Accountant,’ it seemed to me that she had a decade of experience. She knew so much and trained me in the happenings of the business office and the workings of the District in general. It has been my pleasure to call her a co-worker and friend. We have really complemented each other in our work, and she will certainly be missed.”
Chad proceeded to celebrate Donna by means of an acrostic:
Detailed – Donna really handles the dollars and cents in our office, ensuring the various expenses and remittances get posted correctly to the over 600 active accounts that we use. She also works through the details of the Lutheran Witness subscriptions.
Ornery – Donna has a bit of an ornery side. We all know her dry sense of humor and she has never been bashful on battling wits with a District President.
Neater – Donna is neater than me. Thankfully. How many times have I asked her, “Did we make a file for this?” and sure enough, it shows up on my desk a few minutes later.
kNowledgeable – Donna just has a vast working knowledge of our finances and operations. There is going to be some institutional knowledge missing as we come to realize what we don’t know.
A Child of God – This is the most important one we have in common. And as siblings in the Kingdom, we have labored together, we have worshiped together, we have laughed together, and we have grieved together.
When asked about plans for retirement, Donna says she doesn’t know, but she hopes to get some cleaning/organizing done in her house and will keep going up North to the cabin she and her husband bought in recent years. Donna’s last day of work is December 31.
Described as an amazing friend and great listener, Donna (and her sense of humor) will be missed more than she knows. Congratulations, Donna, on your retirement!
Photos by Elisa Schulz/Michigan District, LCMS
