Longtime Oconomowoc reporter Donna Frake dies at 65

Donna Frake, a former reporter who covered the Oconomowoc area for more than two decades, died Friday, May 22, after a long battle with cancer. She was 65.

Born May 15, 1955, Frake grew up in Long Island, N.Y., before moving to the Chicago suburbs as a young adult. She spent the last 30-plus years as a Wisconsin resident.

Donna Frake
Donna Frake

Frake covered Oconomowoc for more than 20 years before retiring in 2017. She predominantly wrote for the Oconomowoc Focus, a Lake Country Publications newspaper that later became a part of Lake Country Now.

Previous stops in Frake’s journalism career included the Chicago Sun-Times and Glenview (Ill.) Announcements.

Frake was married to her husband, Rick, for 42 years. They had two children — Kyle and Kerri — and three grandchildren, Sullivan, Connell and Fiona.

A celebration of Frake’s life is planned summer or early fall.

» Read the obituary

Wisconsin Newspaper Association