June Hill Diehl

June Frances Hill Diehl passed away peacefully on the evening of April 17th, 2026 at Crista Senior Living in Shoreline Washington, at the age of 95. June was born on June 9, 1930 in Southern California to Rachel Hersey and Warren Hill. When she was two years old, she moved with her family to the state of Washington. She was the first of three siblings: June (oldest), Warren (middle), Ted (youngest). June grew up in the Ballard area of Seattle and she graduated from Ballard High School in 1948. She later became a loving mother and prolific artist who shared her talents with her family, and most everyone she met.

In 1952, June took a trip to Germany to meet a GI friend who was stationed there. She left for Germany from Vancouver, British Columbia because she could get her passport faster from there than in Seattle at the time. She enjoyed her short visit in Bavaria and on her way home she planned to catch a ship to New York from Genoa. Before leaving Italy, she wanted to see the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican. It was Tuesday morning. When she got to the Vatican, she was turned away because her blouse didn’t have sleeves. So, she went back to her hotel and changed blouses and went back to the Vatican. She was turned away again because the Sistine Chapel was not open for visitors on Tuesdays. June never got to see the Sistine Chapel.

Her return trip on the M.V. Vulcania was pleasant. She met a lot of nice people onboard, including a few Italians also traveling to New York: one man asked her if she’d like to join him on the deck to see the moon. Once on deck, he said “beautiful moon,” and they were interrupted so she returned to the lounge. Once there, another Italian man asked her if she’d like to see the moon up on deck. Once on deck, he also exclaimed, “beautiful moon, beautiful stars,” and they too were interrupted. A third man invited her to the deck and once there said, “beautiful moon, beautiful stars, beautiful girl, give me a kiss! She politely declined.

Upon arriving at New York, June’s funds were running low when she began to feel a lot of pain in her eyes. While at the American Express Office in New York City she mentioned to the lady at the counter that if she had to go to the hospital, she feared that she would have no place to stay afterwards. The lady at American Express told her she knew of a nice lady in Nyack, New York that might be willing to help her. Her name was Alice Diehl and she had a nursing background. Alice gladly welcomed June into her home, and helped her get the medical attention she needed for her now severe case of iritis (inflammation of the iris). During June’s recovery she stayed at the Diehl home and became acquainted with Allen, Alice, Janice and Shirley—Verner Diehl’s dad, mom and sisters. (June had not yet met Alice’s oldest son, Verner Diehl. That surprise was waiting for her in Seattle.)

When she was able to, she got on a plane and went home to Seattle. As fate would have it, June met her husband, Verner Diehl, at church and they were married in November 1953. Together they had a family of five beautiful children; David, Jeffrey, Bryan, Marvin, and Lynita, and were happily married for 55 years. They attended the North Seattle Alliance Church in North Seattle, where June volunteered her time for various activities, and they both dedicated their time in support of the church missions.

If you knew June, you knew she was an artist. She began to develop her drawing skills by the time she was five. She would sketch anything she saw with whatever was handy; pencil, pen or brush. By the time she was in Elementary School she was voted the best “drawer” in class. She continued her art throughout her life. As a teenager, she attended classes at Seattle’s Cornish School of the Arts. By the time she was married she was making posters for the church bulletin boards, activity announcements, and missionary conventions. She continued to do this until the computer sidelined her. She attended and conducted art classes. She studied various art techniques under A. Lyall Lush, a famous local artist and theologian. Artistic ideas flowed through her like water in the Mississippi; they just never stopped. She created greeting cards, and made the “Diehl” Christmas card nearly every year. She was well versed in mixed media and worked in oils, watercolors, pencil, pastels, glitter paper, and acrylics. June was also accomplished at silk painting and calligraphy. She encouraged her children to be artistic, and they did so with their own personal flair. June told her kids that when she got “old” she wanted us to make sure she lived at King’s Garden and to give her all the art supplies she wanted. So, we did just that.

June loved music, especially Christian hymns and popular tunes from the 1940s. She was often humming a tune. She could muster a song for almost anything we talked about. Sometimes in the middle of the night words from a song would come to her mind. Sometimes she would remember only part of the song so we would look them up on the internet the next day. She would hum or sing that tune for hours and sometimes days.

June also loved gardening and flowers. The more color the better. Sky Nursery was a favorite plant shop. Some of her favorite flowers included tea roses, cosmos and dogwoods. She was very successful at growing strawberries, and one year she had a nice crop of small potatoes.

She is survived by four of her Children, David, Jeffrey (Alison), Bryan (Piper) and Lynita (Roger); three grandchildren, Alison (Ken), Marina (Mikki), and Jonah (Jordyn); and two great grandchildren, Jamie and Leo. She was preceded in death by her youngest son, Marvin.

She will be deeply missed by her family, friends, and all who knew her. The family wishes to extend our sincere thanks to everyone who attended the services and who offered their condolences and heartfelt words of kindness and love.

In memory of June Diehl, gifts in June Diehl's name may be sent to:

North Seattle Church, 2150 N 122nd St. Seattle, WA 98133