Diane Doran Cairns

With Dee Cairns as your friend, wife, mother or mother-in-law, grandmother or great-grandmother, teacher or girl scout leader or neighbor, you know that God has blessed you greatly. She was truly pure in heart. There are not many in this world as wonderful or sweet as this one!

Dee was healed of all her recent aches and pains and went to dance with her Lord and Savior Jesus on Monday 6 February 2023.

(It’s hard to separate Dee and Doug’s story that started out intertwined before they even met, and became so much more so after nearly 63 years together. )

Diane (Dee) Clarice Doran was the second child in an enthusiastic Army Family. Her parents, Roy Ernest Doran and Lucile Mae Kott were from parts around Fredericksburg and San Antonio, Texas. She was born at Fitzsimons Army Hospital in Colorado on 4 August 1939 and lived in many places CONUS and OCONUS, as is familiar to military “brats.” Her father was in the Philippines when Pearl Harbor was attacked and after a difficult defense was captured on Bataan, surviving the infamous “Death March”, 3 1/2 years as a prisoner and two prison transports being sunk out from under him (one on the Philippine coast and the other at the destination coast of Formosa (now Taiwan). When her father, Major Doran came home after the war arriving on the pier with a group of former POWs, young Dee had to ask her mother “which one is Daddy?” Her sister Sue would eventually marry the son of one of Roy’s Army buddies and fellow POW survivor, Houston Parks Houser III after he graduated from West Point in 1957.

Dee started high school in Germany, but graduated from high school at Fort Riley Kansas and earned the title “Miss Junction City” going on to compete in the Miss Kansas pageant. Dee followed her sister Sue to Mary Washington College (MWC), then an all girls school. She met Doug through her good friend and Germany Girl Scout connection, Patty Cairns, Doug’s younger sister who was also her roommate at MWC. (Doug also grew up in an Army family, but branched out from his father, Major General Bogardus S. Cairns’s Army Aviation role to the newly opened Air Force Academy. Doug’s mother’s father, Brigadier General William Edward Brougher was “coincidentally” (or not) Roy Doran’s Division commander in the Philippines, also surviving the war as a “guest” of the imperial Japanese and eventually making it home.)

Dee and Doug were married at the Episcopal National Cathedral in Washington DC and held their reception at Anderson House, Headquarters of the Society of the Cincinnati. Dee eventually moved with Doug to Selma, Alabama (Craig Air Force Base) for flight school and an extended stay as an instructor pilot. Both of their children, Catherine Brougher and Robert Walker were born in Selma. Their second house in Selma (because when a pair of military brats are stationed somewhere for 4 whole years, the urge to move is great) was a duplex, the other half occupied by none other than Patty Cairns Hourin, who had married Jim, one of Doug’s Air Force Academy classmates, because, why not? (Patty and Jimmy did in fact meet at Dee and Doug’s wedding, Patty catching the bouquet and Jim catching the garter - so it really does work sometimes!) The Selma house was just off of Highway 80 and the whole family was there to see the both famous and infamous Civil Rights March from Selma to Montgomery.

Many more short and long tour posts awaited Dee and her family. Among those places were Texas; New Mexico; California; Ohio; Alabama; Clark Air Base in the Philippines was (a very special tour); Newport, RI, Northern Virginia; Valdosta, GA; Albuquerque,NM; New Delhi, India; and eventually back to Maxwell Air Force Base here in Montgomery AL.

Dee also spent many tense months alone with her young children in Virginia while Doug flew F-4C fighter jets in Vietnam.

During not an assignment, but still a life-changing visit to West Point NY, Dee and Doug queried Rob and Terry Cairns (RobBob being Doug’s first cousin) about their intriguingly different faith in Jesus. Dee and Doug together embraced this Savior Jesus, far beyond the mere forms and traditions of their upbringing. Their lives, and over time both of their children’s, would never be the same. Family Bible studies, earnest pursuit in Chapels and Churches, OCF Bible Studies and Sunday Schools, time at OCF retreat centers in Colorado and Pennsylvania all made their mark.

Both Cathy and Rob and their families eventually made that same faith their own and pursue a walk with Jesus largely impacted by the faith modeled by sweet, loving and faithful Dee.

Dee spent all of her waking hours (and always first to rise) loving and supporting Doug and her children; as a Girl Scout leader and teacher she loved and served many other children, too.

Claiming children as her credentials:

Dee’s daughter Cathy lives with her husband William Brown in Wetumpka and has worked as a Registered Nurse (RN) for Montgomery Cardio-Vascular Associates for many years in Montgomery. Dee’s grandson Chris Brown is a successful high end Information Technology developer living outside Atlanta with his wife Jordan, and their daughter, Dee’s only Great Grandchild. Kira Jane has made a great start to impact the world with her wit, love, joy and energy.

Dee’s son Rob is a retired Army Special Forces officer serving as a DoD Civilian with the USMC at Camp Lejeune, NC. His wife Celeste is serving her first term as an NC State Representative. Dee’s grandchildren of their line are Nate, a police officer in Dallas TX, and Katye an Army 2LT working through a Doctor of Physical Therapy program before she comes on active duty. Katye is engaged to be married later this year to Jake McCarn, who is currently on active duty in the U.S. Navy.

(It should be noted that Cairns line connected men always seem to marry very “up.” Cairns ladies, well they are just up to begin with, and manage to marry strong contenders, too.)

A funeral service commending Dee to the Lord and celebrating her life will be held Saturday, February 25, 2023 at 2:00 pm at Christchurch, 8800 Vaughn Road, Montgomery, AL.  Reception to follow in Canterbury Hall.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests that you consider making a contribution to SupportFirstChoice.org (http://supportfirstchoice.org/) (334-260-8010) in memory of Dee.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.AlabamaHeritageFH.com for the Cairns family.