Diana Kate Sledge

Diana Kate Sledge died Friday morning, December 8, 2006, at Seton Medical Center after a brief battle with colon cancer. Diana was born in Austin on October 13, 1948 to Woodrow Wilson Sledge and Marguerite Woodul Sledge, both Austin ISD teachers. She is predeceased by Henry O’Neal Holifield, whom she married on September 23, 1978, and who died of thyroid cancer in 2002. She is survived by their two sons, Nicholas Sledge Holifield and Andrew Sledge Holifield, and by: her aunt Ruth Potter of Dallas, uncle James Woodul of Holly, NJ, cousins Janet Hope of San Antonio, Karen Matthews of Dallas, Sarah McLemore of Houston, Jimmy Vest of Alice, Gayle Woodul of Marble Falls, and Alice Bacak of Carrollton. Diana graduated with honors from The University of Texas at Austin in 1969 with a BA in Psychology, and received a Master’s of Education in Special Education in 1975. For the past 31 years, she was a teacher of both Texas History and special education at Hill Country Middle School. She held the record for longest tenure there, having started before the school’s construction was finished in 1975. Diana was an exceptional teacher who took pride in her ability to teach students how to read. She helped numerous students with learning disabilities or who spoke English as a second language catch up to their peers and pass Texas standardized achievement tests. Her Texas History class is remembered fondly by thousands of former students. She and her husband were deeply involved in Westlake Band Parents, and in ’97-‘98 they were Co-Presidents. A memorial service will be held at 10:00 a.m. on Saturday, December 16, 2006 at Highland Park Baptist Church. Flowers may be sent to Highland Park Baptist Church, 5206 Balcones Dr., Austin, TX 78731. Donations in memoriam can be made to the International Dyslexia Association (www.interdys.org), Chester Bldg. #382, 8600 LaSalle Road, Baltimore, MD 21286-2044. Obituary and guestbook online at wcfish.com