Diana Jeanne Darby

Diana Jeanne Darby passed away on November 15, 2024, 79 years to the day she was born on November 15, 1945; forming the kind of harmony she sought in life. That evening the full moon rose in a crystal clear sky.

She was born in Bloomington IL to Paul Fredrick Lawson and Theresa Chapman Lawson. The family moved every two years until Diana was 14 to accommodate her father’s Army career. Her father retired in Vancouver WA and Diana remained there, and nearby Portland OR, until she married Francis T. Darby (Terry) in 1977. They moved to the Great Smoky Mountains where their two children were born. Their next US Park Service move was to Cave Junction, OR where Diana started working for the US Forest Service as IT help desk support. She also started working as a dispatcher fighting forest fires, a job she loved. From there, they moved to Walla Walla WA. After her divorce in 2004, Diana and her beloved cat, Cricket, relocated with the Forest Service to Juneau AK where she thrived both personally and professionally. She became the IT Project Manager for the Forest Service’s Region 10. She retired from the Forest Service in 2012 and moved to Holly Springs NC to be near her sister.

Diana’s love for the outdoors was deep-seated and enduring. She loved wilderness hiking, camping and kayaking. She was an avid downhill and cross-country skier. She started climbing mountains in the early 1970’s and joined the Mt. Hood Rescue Team in 1974. Her love of climbing took her all over the Pacific Northwest and to the Swiss Alps. Her many outdoor adventures led to great friendships that she cherished.

She loved knitting and fabric arts from an early age and took up quilting in a big way when she moved to Juneau. She started drawing & painting with her sister when she moved to North Carolina and continued to stay outdoors as much as possible. She completed all of the requirements for the NC Botanical Garden Native Plants certificate program. But perhaps her greatest joy was her mountain dulcimer. She had built a dulcimer before her children were born but didn’t have an opportunity to learn to play it until she moved to North Carolina. There she found a fun-loving and supportive group of dulcimer players who made her one of their own.

She fought the cancer that took her life with the same intensity that she enjoyed life. The November supermoon was for her.

She is survived by her two children, Paulle Jeanne Richard (Marc) and James Christopher Darby (Takako) and four grandchildren, Connor Richard, Colton Richard, Takumi Darby and Anna Darby. She is also survived by her sister, Linda Koffenberger and her two brothers, Robert T. Lawson and Lawrence A. Lawson. She was proceeded in death by her parents.

There will be a private Celebration of Life for Diana in mid January. If you would like to honor Diana’s memory with a charitable donation, please consider The First National Dulcimer Orchestra Scholarship Fund (FNDO Scholarship Fund); care of Judy House, 3999 Alonzo Dr., Winston-Salem NC 27104