Don Colonna has enjoyed his twenty-six years as a member of St. Mary of the Woods.  His children both attended the Parish school.  Don credits their St. Mary’s education with providing a strong foundation which helped them succeed at St. Ignatius High School.  Daughter Kristin is currently finishing her doctoral studies at The New England School of Optometry.  Don’s son, Donald Albert, attends Purdue University and is preparing for a career in Mechanical Engineering with GE. 

After thirty-two years in financial management for the City of Chicago, where he was Deputy Commissioner for departmental personnel, Don is currently an adjunct professor at Chicago City Colleges where he teaches business classes.  He recently attained his certification in financial planning and is preparing to start up his own business.  Business and finance run in the family.  Don’s wife, Kathryn, is an accountant for the Department of Aviation.

Don is proud to say that he has had an extensive background on various committees at SMOW.  He has served on the Parish Council, the School Board, and a number of other committees over the years.  He now sits on the Finance Committee and, because Fr. Greg asked, is a member of the Campaign Leadership Team for the Parish Vision 2010 project.  His desire is to help Fr. Greg and St. Mary of the Woods Faith Community successfully achieve the goals of the proposed Master Plan.

            Don observes, “All members of the Parish will benefit from increased accessibility to all facilities, additional security for the faculty and school children, functional administrative space for the school faculty, and an overall refreshed and renovated facelift for the Parish Hall.  The architectural changes to the church vestibule will provide a more conducive space for conducting Parish business before and after Mass”.