Anne Koster Donato

Mrs. Anne Koster Donato, 88, a lifelong resident of Charleston, Isle of Palms and Mt. Pleasant passed from this life on October 19, 2011.  The relatives and friends of Anne Donato are invited to attend her Funeral Service in the Church of the Holy Cross, 2520 Middle Street, Sullivan's Island, SC on Sunday, October 23, 2011 at 3:30 p.m. Burial will follow in Bethany Cemetery. The family will receive friends on Saturday, October 22, 2011 at J HENRY STUHR MOUNT PLEASANT CHAPEL from 5:00 until 7:00 p.m. Anne Theodora Koster was born August 25, 1923, in Charleston.  Her father was John Christopher Koster and her mother was the former Claire Desmond Richardson.  The Koster family came to Charleston during the wave of German immigration in 1848.  Among Mrs. Donato's antecedents were John Andreas Wagener, who became mayor of Charleston, and his brother, Frederick W. Wagener, a merchant and prominent citizen. She attended Craft School and graduated in 1940 from Ashley Hall and in 1944 from The College of Charleston.  She was the valedictorian at each institution graduating from The College with an Artium Baccalaureatus degree. During World War II she worked in the communications office of the Charleston Navy Yard.  She married Dr. Henry Donato, and while he was an intern in New York City she worked for the Civil Aeronautics Association.  Upon returning to Charleston she spent the next 20 years raising a family. In November 1967, Mrs. Donato came to the Waring Historical Library on the campus of The Medical University of South Carolina.  The library had moved into the former Hoffman Library on the campus of the former Porter Military Academy.  Previously it had been housed in a room in the medical college building at Barre and Calhoun Streets, no longer standing.  She was first employed as secretary to Dr. Joseph I. Waring, who at that time was working under a federal grant to write the three-volume "History of Medicine in South Carolina".  About the same time Dr. Waring was laying the groundwork for the historical library that was to bear his name. In celebration of the 150^th anniversary of the medical university in 1974, Mrs. Donato assisted Dr. Waring and Dr. Kenneth M. Lynch, then chancellor of the university, in preparing a history of the institution.   After Dr. Waring's death in 1977, Mrs. Donato took over the day to day operation of the historical library under the supervision of an advisory committee.  Under her curatorship the library grew to 7,000 books, the oldest of which, written in Latin, dates back to 1513.  She retired from the Library on July 1, 1987.  At the time of her retirement Dr. E. Curtis Worthington said "Her professional expertise aside, her personal charm and quiet consideration for everyone around her will be sorely missed".  In 1997, in conjunction with Jane Oxner Waring, Mrs. Donato edited a biography of Dr. Waring entitled "Joseph I. Waring, a True Physician" She is a member of the American Association for the History of Medicine and the Association of Librarians in the Health Sciences.  She is a former member of the board of the South Carolina Historical Society; a former member of the vestry of the Episcopal Church of the Holy Cross on Sullivan's Island; and former secretary and treasurer of the Waring Library Society. A life is not only about dates, milestones, and achievements, but also about the effect one has on the people in our lives.  Anne touched many people, her family, her childhood friends, her co-workers, The Holy Cross Community and, in a sense, made all of them her family.  Her sense of caring and commitment, inclusiveness, and warmness were in part due to good manners, but more to openness, generosity of spirit, and a belief in something bigger and more important.  We are all richer for having her in our lives and envy those who are with her now. She is survived by her sons, Dr. Henry Donato, Jr. and wife Rita of Charleston, Mr. Christopher Daniel Donato and wife Brenda of Mt. Pleasant, and daughters, Ms. Clare Desmond Donato and husband Michael Lee Hammel of Port Angeles, Washington and Ms. Marianne Koster Donato of Mt. Pleasant.  She has 10 grandchildren and step-grandchildren.  They are Keith Edwards Berenguer and wife Kate of Virginia Beach, VA., Douglas Kenneth Berenguer and wife Monica of Charleston, Margaret Donato Allen and husband Roderick of Charleston, Christopher Daniel Donato, Jr. and wife Ashley of Mt. Pleasant, Claire Desmond Donato Chapman and husband Jeffrey of Mt. Pleasant, Elizabeth Koster Gissell of Gallup, New Mexico, Joann Renee Knight of Goose Creek, Michael Thomas McCormick and wife Heidi of Mt. Pleasant, Lacy Rose Langdon and husband Dean of Port Angeles, Washington and Elijah Misha Hammel of Port Angeles, Washington.  There are also 13 great grandchildren and step-grand children. She was preceded in death by her sister, Claire Desmond Koster. In lieu of flowers, the family requests her many dear friends consider a donation to The Church of the Holy Cross, 2520 Middle Street, Sullivan's Island, Sc  29482-0506 or The Waring Historical Library Society, 175 Ashley Avenue, MSC 403, Charleston, SC  29425.