 In May 1983, Donegan, along with Billy Taylor, Milt Hinton, Art Blakey, Maxine Sullivan, Jaki Byard, and Eddie Locke, performed at a memorial service for Earl Hines, held at St. Peter's Evangelical Lutheran Church in New York City.Her first six albums proved to be obscure compared to her successes in performance.It was not until the 1980s that her work gained notice in the recorded jazz world.