Gianfranco (John) Donati, a true renaissance man, passed away on September 21st, 2024, after an incredible life filled with family, travel and love. He was born in Rome, Italy on May 13th, 1934, to Isabella (Muraglia) Donati and Bernardino Donati whom both preceded him in death as well as a brothers Adalberto Donati, Corrado Donati and a sister Maria Teresa Donati. Two surviving siblings, Guiliana and Enzo Donati, reside in Italy.

Gianfranco met Beverly Davis in Rome while she was teaching at the International School, during their initial meeting, Gianfranco acted French as Beverly was not impressed by the Italian bravado. As she began to fall for Gianfranco, he revealed his true nationality, she has loved Italians ever since. They were married in the Campidoglio in 1962 and have been married for 62 years. Besides his widow, Beverly Donati, he is survived by a daughter, Jackie (Robin) Loyd of Plymouth, England, Marc (Brenda) Donati, Raoul (Judy) Donati, and Claude (Lisa) Donati all living in the state of Indiana.

He takes great pride in his grandchildren, Alexis (Gary) Yeoman, Matt (Kayla) Donati, Andrew Donati, Maria (Charlie) Donati-Taos, Sophia (Cameron) Donati-Jones, Brock Donati, Caroline Donati, Francesca Felton and Richard (Lauren) Felton. He had one newly born great grandchild Gianna Jones.

If you met Gianfranco you know, he was one of the most interesting people in the world. In his early life, he was a child during WWII and had the misfortune of having to live with Nazi soldiers during the occupation of Rome. This experience forever altered his perspective. His collection of stories surrounding this experience will live on through his family as he would captivate everyone when he was reflecting on those difficult days.

Later, as he became an adult, he would become one of the first paparazzies in the world. While Rome had become the center of the movie making industry in the late 50's, he had become a well-known photographer mixing it up with the rich and famous. He was friends with the Fellini brothers and worked with the likes of Ursula Andrews, Broderick Crawford, Abby Lane and others while also acting in several movies, spaghetti westerns, and most notably in The Apartment.

After marrying his love, Beverly, they moved from Rome, Italy to Mishawaka, Indiana to raise their family. Although Gianfranco worked in several industries, he was best known for his ability to cook an incredible meal and to raise the worldliness of any room he entered. His distinguished attire and debonair style made his family proud. Until his final days, he continued to impress those around him with unmatched knowledge of history, culture and music. He was a voracious reader, consuming hundreds of books in both Italian and English.

He was quite the athlete, and nearly represented Italy in the Olympics in Wrestling. It would later thrill him to see all his sons achieve great success in the sport that he loved. He especially enjoyed his time as the President of the board for the Midwest Chamber Orchestra. During that time, he hosted Vincent Price and Ertha Kitt at his home during the post-performance party. His personality was a magnet.

He was a member of the prestigious fraternity which has been meeting at Armando's barbershop for over 50 years.

He would often say, "When the Pope dies, we vote for another." It was his way of saying life goes on. We cannot vote for another Gianfranco; he was one of a kind.

There will be a private family celebration.