Diane K. Griffin, 59

Diane K. Griffin, 59, formerly of Blair, died Sunday, Sept. 9, 2012, at her home in Odessa, Texas. Services are 10 a.m. Thursday, October 4, at South Canyon Lutheran Church in Rapid City, S.D. A private family celebration of life, scattering of ashes, will take place following the service.

Diane Kay Ragels was born on March 27, 1953, in Cody, Wyo., to Richard and LaDonna Ragels. She was the oldest of seven children. The family later settled in Rapid City, S.D., where she graduated from Stevens High School in 1971.

In December of 1971, she married Russell Moen in Rapid City. After a military tour overseas, the couple relocated to Miles City, Mont. The couple later divorced.

While in Montana, Diane began to pursue a career in nursing and graduated with an associate degree in 1980 from Miles Community College. From there, she went on to earn her bachelor of science in nursing from Montana State University in Bozeman.

She joined the U.S. Army in 1987 and earned a master of science from Baylor University to become a certified, registered nurse anesthetist (CRNA). She completed her residency at William Beaumont Army Medical Center in El Paso, Texas, in 1991.

In 1990, she married Colonel (ret.) Greg A. Griffin. The couple was stationed in Ramstein, Germany, from 1991 to 1994. She worked at the U.S. Army’s Landstuhl Regional Medical Center as a CRNA. She was medically retired from the Army in 1994 at the rank of captain.

The couple relocated to San Antonio where she was employed at the Texas Headache Institute from 1996 through 1999.

The couple divorced and she moved to Blair in September 2007 to be closer to her sisters and mother.

In November 2010, she moved to Odessa, Texas, to be near her daughter and grandchildren.

She loved gardening and she was an accomplished pianist. She also enjoyed spending time with her children skiing and fishing. She will be remembered for her love and generosity and will be greatly missed by the many hearts she touched.

She is survived by her son and daughter-in-law, Matthew and Sheila Moen of Spokane, Wash.; mother and stepfather, LaDonna and Wally Jaehn of Blair; stepmother, Waneta Ragels of Rapid City; seven grandchildren; one great-granddaughter; one brother, Rick Ragels of Crowley, Colo.; four sisters and brothers-in-law, Lauri and Larry Randolph of Elko, Nev., Beth and Woody Welke and Amy and Joel Wing, all of Blair, and Nancy Frick of Elkhorn; numerous beloved nieces and nephews; and several aunts, uncles, and cousins.

She was preceded in death by her daughter, Jennie; father, Richard “Dick” Ragels; brother, Terry Ragels; and her maternal and paternal grandparents.

Note: veteran

Note: photo in paper

~~obituary and funeral leaflet courtesy of Washington County Genealogical Society. Newspaper clippings on file in the Public Library, Blair, Nebraska ~~~

FindaGrave # 98510404