Donna Wolf Steigerwaldt

She succeeded her father, Harry H. Wolf Sr., as chairman of the board and chief executive officer of the privately held, Kenosha-based business after his death in 1978. In 1982, Mrs. Steigerwaldt was instrumental in introducing Jockey for Her, the company's first line of women's undergarments. She also oversaw licensing agreements that expanded Jockey's exposure worldwide and brought designs from Liz Claiborne and Tommy Hilfiger into the fold. The former Donna Wolf grew up in Wilmette and graduated from New Trier High School in 1947. She earned a bachelor's degree in language from Colorado College in Colorado Springs in 1951, and returned to Chicago to work as an office manager at a Loop insurance firm. Around the same time, she helped found the Chicago chapter of Executive Women International, a networking group for businesswomen. She adopted two daughters in the late 1950s and early 1960s, and stayed at home to raise them until 1978, when her father's death prompted an ownership crisis at Jockey, a family-owned business since before World War II. A 32-year resident of Glenview Illinois, Mrs. Steigerwaldt and her husband also spent part of each year in the last decade in Sarasota, Fla. In addition to her husband William, Mrs. Steigerwaldt is survived by two daughters, Debra Steigerwaldt Waller and Linda Joan Dragonette; a sister, Mary Bogue; and eight grandchildren.