Donna Rachel Marie Simbeck, 92, of St. Marys, PA

Donna Rachel Marie Simbeck, 92, of St. Marys, PA died peacefully at her home on December 19, 2023.
She was born August 23, 1931 in Elbon, Pa, the first child of the late Raymond and Margaret Herzing Gahr. On August 7, 1954 in the St. Mary’s Catholic Church, she married Richard “Dick” Simbeck who preceded her in death on April 2, 2013.
Donna was a coal miner’s daughter. Her first school experience was in a one-room schoolhouse in Elbon where she was able to skip first grade. After her father was killed in a mining accident, her mother moved the family of 5 to St. Marys to live in her grandparents’ home. Donna attended the St. Marys Parochial school and graduated salutatorian of the Central Catholic High School, class of 1948.
































