Obituary of PATRICIA M. DIANA

Ms. Patricia (nee Murphy) Diana died Wednesday morning, September 21, 2005 at the Genesis Eldercare -Troy Hills Nursing Home in Parsippany following a short illness. She was 70. Born in Jersey City, she was raised in Kearny and graduated from Kearny High School in 1953. She had lived most of her life in Belleville and Bloomfield before moving to Old Bridge 10 years ago. Ms. Diana served as a Woman Air Force Cadet in the Air Force Reserves from 1953 to 1956. She was stationed at the Floyd Bennett Naval Air Force Base in New York, where she attained the rank of Airman Third Class. She had worked as a reporter with the Belleville Times and the Belleville Telegram. She had a weekly column entitled "Browsing Belleville" which reported on the good news in the town such as weddings, anniversaries, birthdays and other special events. She was later employed as the executive director of the Bloomfield Chamber of Commerce and as an editorial assistant for the Herald News. She also concurrently was owner and president of Diana Associates, Inc. a public relations firm in Bloomfield. Most recently she had been employed as a public relations director with the American Bible Society in New York City, where she was also author and editor of the company's newsletter which was read worldwide. She retired in 2000. Ms. Diana had formed the Belleville Summer Employment Program for Teens which was geared towards helping young women learn necessary skills to join the job market. She also served as president of the Tri-Town Business and Professional Women and was a past-president of the Bloomfield Safety Council, a member of the Bloomfield High School Career Education Advisory Council, and a board member of the Belleville-Bloomfield Red Cross. She was appointed to the Board of Trustees of the Glen Gardner Geriatric Center by former Governor Brendan Byrne. She was also named Business Person of the Year by the Bloomfield High School Future Business Leaders of America and received a state award in Cherry Hil and a national award in San Francisco, California. Ms. Diana was affectionately known as the "Poem Lady" as she would use her gift of writing to help others celebrate special events with a unique and original poem. She was preceded in death by her loving mother Doris Murphy, and her siblings, Thomas Murphy, Evelyn Durkin, and Lorraine Clark. Survivors include her two daughters, Linda Diana and her partner Lori Gahr of Boise, Idaho, and Susan DeJessa and her husband Stephen of Lake Hiawatha; two grandchildren, Joseph and Amanda DeJessa of Lake Hiawatha; two brothers William Murphy of Maine, and Jack Murphy of South Carolina; two sisters in law, Mary and Doreen Murphy; her longtime companion Raymond Parks of Old Bridge; and many nieces, nephews, and friends.