Donna Patricia (Shannon) Scott

June 12, 1944 - May 9, 2015

Died at Kaiser Permanente South Sacramento after an extended illness. A proud San Francisco native who lived most of her life here. After graduating from Star of the Sea Academy in 1961 and training as a dental hygienist, Donna attended the University of San Francisco Evening College. She worked in Social Security, was active in the union, and later entered San Francisco Law School. She graduated in 1975, passed the bar and was admitted to practice in 1976. She was practicing at City Hall in 1978 when Mayor George Moscone and Harvey Milk were killed. In her criminal defense practice, she met Galen Scott, a private investigator; they wed April 14, 1984 at Lake Tahoe, renewing their vows in 2006. They shared keen intellectual acuity, wit and interest in public affairs. In 1989, Donna suffered a catastrophic stroke; she took a disability retirement from her work with Alameda County and while increasingly housebound, was grateful for the company of the couple’s cats and dogs. She also enjoyed painting, cooking and reading, especially crime novels. She lived in Phoenix and in Sacramento, where her last residence was Capital Transition Care, 6821 24th St. There she was visited by high school friends whose loyalty withstood the test of time. Donna also was affiliated with St. Anthony Parish, 660 Florin Road, Sacramento, where a memorial Mass will be at 8 a.m. Monday June 15. She was predeceased by her father Donn C. Shannon (1989), mother Margaret (“Margo”) L. Hayden Shannon (1983) and half-sister “Tim”; husband Galen Scott and his parents Benard (2000) and Maxine (2003); and her previous fiancé Jim Hughes, who was serving with the Peace Corps in Ecuador when he died in a ferry mishap in 1965. Donna is survived by several cousins who live out of state.