Local high school grad, 23, dies

Jennifer Donnell, a Fashion Island retail manager and graduate of Corona del Mar High School, died in her sleep Dec. 24.

Donnell, the daughter of former Fashion Island department store manager Jim Donnell, was 23. Her family did not provide a cause of death.

Donnell, an only child, moved to Newport Beach with her father in 1988 and started first grade at Harbor View Elementary School. Upon graduating from high school, she attended classes at Orange Coast College.

Donnell’s father described her as an outgoing, compassionate young woman who often baby-sat around Newport Beach. In 1993, he said, the Boys and Girls Club named her its Junior Member of the Year for her work with younger children. Later, she worked as a live-in nanny for a family in Corona del Mar.

“Jennifer was an outgoing, caring and loyal friend to everyone she met,” Jim Donnell said. “She was fun-loving.

“So many people in Newport will remember her as a little girl, hanging out with her dad on weekends, when he wasn’t working, or sailing with him in the harbor on their little sailboat. This was a very special young lady because she shared her father with everyone else and never, ever complained about it.”

Donnell is survived by her father; her mother, Donna Wallace of San Diego; her stepmother, Kristen Donnell; and her half-brothers, Jimmy and Jack Donnell of Newport Beach. A service will be held at 4 p.m. on Jan. 9 at Our Lady Queen of Angels Church.