September 29, 1947 – December 17, 2025

Diane was born in Waterloo, Iowa. She was the first of two children for Ronald and Patricia (Ream) Martin. In 1952 the family moved from Marshalltown, IA to Granada Hills, CA.
A ski trip with a friend to Lake Tahoe in 1971 changed Diane’s life forever. She fell head over heels with the lake and mountains. This would lead her to call South Lake Tahoe home for the next 52 years.
She was a high limit blackjack dealer at Harrah’s Casino for many years. This funded putting herself through college to get a teaching degree. She taught at Sierra House and Meyers Elementary Schools. She had an extraordinary way of connecting with kids, so teaching came naturally to her and she loved it.
Diane had many hobbies including skiing, swimming, photography, bicycling, ballroom & salsa dancing, but top of the list, was sailing! Sailing became her passion, from being a part of the Windjammers Yacht Club, having her own sailboat, teaching other women how to sail and participating in many races.
Diane was a long-standing member of Hope Lutheran Church. Her faith in Jesus Christ was the most important part of her life, expressed though serving her church, her community and the mission field.
Eventually, in 2023 Diane would come to reside at the Chateau Assisted Living in Gardnerville, Nevada, where she continued making friends and brightening people’s day with her beautiful smile and affectionally calling everyone “honey bunny”.
A Celebration of Life will be held at Hope Lutheran Church on Saturday, May 16 at 11:00am