Warrior momma

For those of you who have the pleasure of knowing Donna Jornsay, you know that she is a warm, caring, generous, thoughtful, fun-loving, easy-going and hard-working woman.

Maybe I’m biased but of all the mothers I’ve come to know, my mother truly tops the cake.

Donna Jornsay seems to be able to do it all.

She is an incredible mother, sister, aunt, nurse and friend.

She has not only made a name for herself as a diabetes nurse educator and speaker, but as a top-notch scrapbook-er and a mother for two ambitious young women.

She is also known for her stellar event planning skills; fundraisers, Halloween, Christmas and birthdays have always been her specialty.

I’ll never forget my tenth birthday party; my mom rented two adjoining rooms at the Huntington Hilton hotel and invited 10 of my best girl friends for a slumber party. We ordered room service, swam in the hotel’s indoor pool, watched Space Jam and bounced on the beds…that is just one of the dozens of memories I have of attending one of Donna Jornsay’s fabulous parties.

I don’t know how she does it but my mom has managed to make being a full-time employee, friend and mother look not only do-able but extremely easy.

As I get older, I come to realize how not easy it is. I don’t even have children and I can’t imagine doing half of the things she manages to do in the span of 24 hours.

Donna Jornsay is my hero and my role model.

She has taught me everything I know; how to cook, scrapbook, throw a party, wrap a present, make a mean pomegranate martini and sing like no one is listening.

She has taught me how to find the silver linings and, more importantly, how to live in the moment.

My mother is the best example that I know of someone who is truly present wherever they are.

Regardless of what life throws her way, my mother handles everything with poise, confidence, strength and resilience.

She makes the most of every day and never lets the bumps in the road bring her down; she uses them as opportunities to learn and grow.

My mother’s most recent bump in the road, a serious health ailment, has only served to strengthen her positive attitude and seize-the-day mentality.

Last week, just twenty minutes after her chemo treatment, she spoke for four hours at a conference where she educated nearly 150 individuals on diabetes management and kidney disease.

I couldn’t help but beam with pride as I stood in the back of the room watching dozens of individuals stare at her in awe, laugh at her jokes, ask her for advice and wait in line just to thank her and shake her hand.

“My take on getting sick with something like cancer is that you have to live each day to the fullest. You have to celebrate and enjoy every day and every holiday… every reason and event worth celebrating should be celebrated to the fullest,” she recently told me.

And this isn’t just talk. You should see our house; it’s fully decked out for Halloween. The trees are covered with fake cobwebs and the trick-or-treat bags are ready and waiting by the door for the neighborhood kids.

My mother, recently nicknamed “Warrior momma”, is a clearly a force that can’t be stopped. She is strong, energetic, vivacious, stylish and fun… like really fun.

She truly is one of the most fun people I know.

Everyone, and I mean everyone, who meets Donna loves spending time with her.

She has a great sense of humor and the ability to light up a room wherever she goes.

My mother has truly set the bar for what it takes to be a good friend, employee, sister, daughter and mother.

Her positivity, energy and enthusiasm for life is not only contagious but truly inspirational.

Thank you, Warrior momma for being an unconditional source of strength, love, insight and inspiration.