Diane Hanselman

The daughter of Lorenz Charles Kierdorf and Margaret Clark Kierdorf, Diane was born on May 5, 1935 in Detroit, Michigan. She attended Southeastern High School and then the University of Michigan. It was there she met her husband, Allan Carter Hanselman, whom she married in 1958 and who predeceased her in 1993. While at U of M, she and Al also began many lifelong friendships and absorbed the meaning of “Go Blue!”, teaching their children to sing “Hail to the Victors!” when they could barely speak. Diane shared her solidarity with the Maize & Blue right to the end of her life, heading to the Big House to listen to band practice and taking turns hosting weekly football parties with a crew of fellow fans.

Diane’s self-described “kick-ass life” included adventures both near and far, with stints living in Michigan, California, Spain, and Florida before her return to Ann Arbor for good. She was always eager to travel to new places, embrace new experiences, and make new friends. She was a fearless traveler, often piling children (and occasionally dogs!) into the station wagon for long road trips to the latest place she’d read about and wanted to see. She travelled all over the world, later in life often cruising with her life partner, George Bruni.

Her fearlessness extended to new interests and hobbies – Diane didn’t know the meaning of the word “can’t” and would try pretty much everything at least once. After raising her children, she became a realtor in Florida and then in Michigan. She was accomplished at sewing, knitting, embroidery, decoupage, wheel-thrown pottery, chair caning and many other crafts, and she loved browsing for antiques, which she refinished herself. She was a Michigan state-certified Master Gardener and her garden overflowed with a colorful profusion of flowers every spring and summer, one year earning her a Golden Trowel Award from the Ann Arbor Park Advisory Commission. She also loved animals, and shared her life with a variety of four-legged creatures over the years.

Diane loved to cook and entertain, and was the life of every party she could find! She could often be spotted dancing up a storm with a cigarette in one hand and a glass of wine in the other, arrayed in the sparkliest of attire and baubles.

Mom, you had us convinced you were invincible. You may have gotten frail, but you never got old – your body may be still, but your spirit will live on in myriad stories of your exploits beginning “Remember when Diane...”

Diane Hanselman is survived by her children Laurie (Jeff) Moskow of Lansing, NY; Lisa Hanselman of Ann Arbor and Scott Hanselman of Redondo Beach, CA; her partner George Bruni of Ann Arbor; and her grandchildren Sarah (Colin) Zarzycki of Lafayette, CO and Jacob (Natasha) Moskow of Los Angeles, CA. We are heartbroken that she just missed meeting her two great-grandchildren, due in a few weeks. She is also survived by her brother, Douglas Kierdorf of Newton, MA; her brother-in-law Richard (Sue) Hanselman; niece Lynda (Dan) Alber and nephews Mark (Sally) Hanselman, Jeffrey (Deb) Sloss and Andrew (Linda) Sloss, and several great-nieces and nephews. She was predeceased by her husband, Allan Carter Hanselman and her sister and brother-in-law, Mary Lou (David) Sloss.

There will be an informal gathering in Diane’s memory on Tuesday, March 13 from 3:00 – 7:00 p.m. at Muehlig Funeral Chapel at 403 South Fourth Avenue in Ann Arbor.

For those wishing to send flowers, please consider instead a donation to one of Diane’s two favorite charities, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital or the Huron Valley Humane Society.