Obituary

Danuta (Danusia) was a very loving and kind soul that went to be with her Lord on July 28, 2024.

Danuta was born in Warsaw, Poland on July 26, 1943.  She was born to loving parents that were involved in the theater.  However, this was at the height of WWII in Poland and this had a huge impact on her life.  Danuta and her family were in a bomb shelter in Warsaw when a bomb exploded nearby and killed her father.  Danuta and her mother survived the war and her mother continued in costume design for the theatre in and around Warsaw.

Tragically, Danuta’s mother passed away a few years later when Danuta was in grade school.  After her mother’s death, Danuta was cared for by her uncle Stanislav Milski, a well-known actor in Polish cinema.  Danuta lived with her uncle throughout her teenage years in Sopot, Poland on the Baltic Sea.

Danuta went on to university studies at the Academy of Fine Arts in Lodz, Poland and graduated with a Master’s Degree in Fine Arts and Fashion.

In her early 20’s, Danuta moved to Paris and started her design career working for several fashion houses.  In the early 1970’s, Danuta moved to San Francisco and continued in fashion design.  She was one of the first designers at Esprit de Corp and designed the “Plain Jane” line of dresses.  For over 20 years, she traveled extensively to India, Hong Kong, Japan and Europe to manage design and production for various fashion companies.  Danuta branched out in later years and designed her own jewelry lines and lived a quiet life.  She married her husband John Shadduck in 1990 and lived in various locations in Marin County and Silicon Valley in California.  Danuta will be dearly missed by her husband and her extended family.