Dona Arlene Fling

A memorial service will be held on Sunday July 16, 2023 at 2pm. at New Hope Lutheran Church, 4739 W Powell Rd, Powell, OH 43065, just east of the zoo. Reception to follow. Note: This a new date.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests that you donate to:
Columbus Alumnae Chapter - Sigma Alpha Iota
Dona Fling Scholarship For Student Musicians
782 Misty Hollow Ln
Columbus OH 43228

Dona Arlene Thompson was born March 31st, 1924 in Sioux Falls, South Dakota as the only child of Gertrude Vidvei Thompson (1891-1947) and Elmer Olaus Thompson (1892-1949). Soon after, her family moved to Brookings, South Dakota, surrounded by the South Dakota State campus. Her father was a grain elevator operator and her mother a homemaker who arrived at Ellis Island in 1917 from Stavanger, Norway. She was married to Russell S. Fling from 1954 until his passing in 2018 when her name changed to Dona A Fling. She was always proud of her Norwegian heritage.

She was in the first class of the SDSU preschool and could name her classmates 90 years later. She went back for a visit in 2018. You can read about her visit and the preschool at https://state.sdstateconnect.org/preschools-humble-start/. Her parents boarded college students, some of whom became friends and mentors and 'big brothers'. Her cousin Genevieve also lived with them for a while, giving her a 'big sister'. One of which helped her with obtaining jobs in her career in the medical profession.

As a young girl, Dona began acrobatics and performed her acrobat routine at the 1933 Chicago World Fair. Throughout her life, until her last year, she didn't stop moving and even occasionally walked on her hands to prove that she could still do it, well into her 50's and 60's.

She began her lifelong journey with music with violin lessons when she was 5 years old taking lessons from Carl "Christy" Christensen at South Dakota State College.

She had a very happy childhood, and returned often for class reunions. In high school she played violin in the orchestra, played duets with her friends, Hattie and Priscilla, who played piano and harp. She was a cheerleader and homecoming queen.

After graduating from high school in 1942, she went to South Dakota State for two years, she then transferred to Iowa State to complete her Bachelor's degree. After college she worked briefly at a lab in Lansing, Michigan. She moved on to Walter Reed Hospital in Baltimore, working with Dr. Batson, one of her family's boarders while he was at SDSU. At Walter Reed Hospital she was involved with early blood Rh factor research.

She returned home to Sioux Falls, South Dakota to care for her mother who died of cancer in 1947. Soon after her father had a series of strokes and died in 1949. Following her parents' deaths, and after taking a cross country road trip with her aunt, Dona settled in Columbus, Ohio where high school friends from South Dakota, Dee and Dar, lived.
Dona obtained her masters in Medical Technology at Ohio State University while working in the lab and writing the training manual for their new electrophoresis machine. She was humble about it, as doctors explained the operation of the machine to her, unaware that she wrote the manual on it and she knew more than they did!

In Columbus she also joined the Little Symphony in 1951 which officially became the Columbus Symphony Orchestra in 1955. During the 1953-54 season, at a very special concert, Russ (Russell S Fling) picked out Dona from the musicians on stage and asked his friend to introduce him to her. Russ and Dona were married on October 2, 1954.

Dona and Russ' first home was on Northridge Road where their first 2 children, Russell Thomas (1955) and Karen (1957), were born. After moving to their new home in the Clintonville neighborhood, Paul (1960) was born. Raising children took most of Dona's time for several years while Russ built his structural engineering firm. Dona was proud that she had a small inheritance from her parents which sustained them until it took off.

In 1961 Dona was unable to continue in the Symphony after suffering from vertigo and losing hearing in one ear. Having only one good ear didn't stop her though. Once she recovered from the vertigo, she was actively involved with music throughout her life. She was a member of SAI music sorority and Women In Music. She played in numerous groups and concerts well into her 80's. She also played in quartets with Paul. So music remained her love for nearly all her life. She was an excellent musician, who appreciated tone and musical expression above all else.

Dona loved loved Sonja Henie, Beverly Sills, a beautiful melody on the violin, and cats. She also related to Betty White and Queen Elizabeth, both accomplished, long-living women similar in stature and age. But mostly cats. She was not of the mind that more cats were better, instead she formed strong bonds with one cat at a time. Our first family cat was Rosie, ostensibly Karen's, but we all knew that Dona was the owner. Rosie too lived a long life but Dona was devastated with her loss. Later in life, Paul had a cat, Stevie, that Mom adored, even though not reciprocated by Stevie, and she was always concerned about the welfare of Stevie.

Dona was a dedicated mother and would do anything for her children, sometimes to a fault, but we'd rather that then the alternative. She always wanted to feed people, even when they weren't hungry and it wasn't a mealtime. And she was always the last to sit down, and well after the meal started, to make sure everyone was satisfied.

Dona was a member of the CCC, Child Conservation Club, with other mothers in the neighborhood. The proper title should have probably been, "Mother's Having Fun Together"! They had parties, made 8mm movies and got together and had a ball together. Child conservation was a byproduct of having a happy mother!

She was a stickler for detail. Everything had to be done correctly. When her children (or other hired workman) had a job to do, sloppy was not allowed! She also had a great eye for color matching, although she might have a difficult time describing the difference in colors until you got it just right.
We joked that if Mom wasn't worrying, she wasn't alive. It could be wondering if her children were OK, whether the cat came in at night, the welfare of a fellow resident in her memory care facility, whether the stove was left on when we went on vacation or running out of gas (which just drove our father to drive a bit farther). This would drive most to depression, for her it was her driving force to make sure everything was taken care of.

Dona was a life long Lutheran and a member of Clinton Heights Lutheran Church for many years and then Upper Arlington Lutheran in later years. She sang in the church choir. At Upper Arlington she had a special bond discussing childhood memories with Pastor Paul Ulring, who also grew up near Brookings.

Unlike her husband, she loved to watch sports, especially Ohio State, Iowa State and her beloved South Dakota State Jackrabbits. She would listen to games on the radio so she would hear about big plays before the TV would show them! She was somewhat technically challenged and wasn't able to operate her iPad very well. But when she wanted to watch a sports event and her husband had the TV tied up she persevered and made that iPad respond!

There is plenty more about this accomplished great grandmother, grandmother, mother, wife, musician, acrobat, medical technologist and trail blazer.

Dona was preceded in death by her husband, Russell S. Fling and her mother, Gertrude Vidvei Thompson, and father, Elmer Olaus Thompson. She is survived by three children: Russell Thomas Fling, Karen Fling Morrissey, Paul Eric Fling and their spouses Janice Fling and Alfred Morrissey; five grandchildren: Kari Bardelli, Russell Ryan Fling, Lara Stroup, Max Morrissey, Luke Morrissey and their spouses Matt Bardelli, Bekah Kennedy and Robert Stroup; eight great grandchildren: Luca Bardelli, Erik Bardelli, Lia Bardelli, Erin Bardelli, Hazel Kennedy Fling, Russell Robert Kennedy Fling, Elinor Stroup, Arlo Stroup and many extended family members.

A memorial service will be held on July 16, 2023 at 2pm. at New Hope Lutheran Church in Powell, Ohio. Reception to follow.