Painting a Pretty Picture: Karen Taylor Donmoyer, ’86, Has Fond Memories of Her Hillsdale Experience
Written by Doug Goodnough
Although running helped bring Karen Taylor Donmoyer, ’86, to Hillsdale College four decades ago, it was the overall experience that kept her there.
A standout runner at Lake Orion (Michigan) High School, she said she was proud to contribute to the 1982 women’s cross country team that won NAIA District 23 and Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference titles. The Chargers competed at NAIA Nationals in Kenosha, Wisconsin.
“It was a great experience,” Donmoyer said. “It definitely pushed me to my limit.”
She decided to forego her final two years of running to focus on other areas of the College. In fact, she was the director of Student Activities, the president of her Chi Omega sorority, and a member of the Lamplighters and H-Club organizations. A political economy major, the 1985 Homecoming Queen also spent a semester participating in the Washington-Hillsdale Internship Program (WHIP), interning at the Washington Legal Foundation.
“I had a great time at Hillsdale,” she said. “I really felt comfortable with the atmosphere, and the people were the type that I wanted to spend the next four years with.”
After earning her law degree from the University of Michigan in 1989, she worked in corporate law in Chicago for a few years. Eventually moving to Scottsdale, Arizona, Donmoyer was a labor employment attorney for an airline before taking on a much more important job—mother.
Now that her twin daughters are grown, she discovered a new passion—painting. During the COVID-19 pandemic, she started painting every day, taking classes, and honing her craft. She said her watercolor portraits have won three awards, and she is a commissioned artist.
“I’m working really hard at it—just as I did and still do as a runner,” Donmoyer said. “That mindset of pushing through the difficulty because you’re trying to achieve something is similar in both pursuits. I’m trying to be the best painter I can be and whatever comes with that.”
Raising two daughters with autism, she said she advocates for the Autism Speaks non-profit organization. Running remains a passion: she still runs three times a week and has competed in many races, including the Boston Marathon three times.
She said she enjoys reading Imprimis and has fond memories of her alma mater.
“I had great friends but also great opportunities,” she said of Hillsdale. “I’m very thankful for all of those. It was a really great place.”
Doug Goodnough, ’90, is Hillsdale’s director of Alumni Marketing. He enjoys connecting with fellow alumni in new and wonderful ways.
Published in February 2023