Dianne Kaighin Martin

(December 9, 1946–February 16, 2026)

Dianne K. Martin, 79, of Warren, Ohio and Chautauqua, N.Y., passed away peacefully on February 16, 2026 in Charlottesville, Virginia. She was surrounded by loving family members over the last six months as she lost her battle with cancer. She was a devoted family person–daughter, sister, cousin, aunt, mother, and grandmother. To her grandchildren, she was known affectionately as “Tootie Bell,” a doting and loving grandmother.

Dianne was born on December 9, 1946 and was raised in Warren, Ohio by her parents Howard Ernst Kaighin and Patricia Griffith Kaighin and with her three siblings, Dave, Jim, and Karen. Dianne was a lifelong resident of Warren, Ohio. She attended Warren G. Harding High School and then Rollins College, where she studied the Spanish language and studied abroad in Spain. In her youth, she attended camp at Beenadeewin Camp for Girls in Vermont, where she enjoyed water sports, horseback riding, traditional camp activities, and making friends. She was married to Frederick W. Martin of Bath, Ohio in August of 1968. They had three children together–Greg, Amy, and Carrie. She spent the last six months of her life living in Charlottesville, spending many days with her children and visitors. She is preceded in death by her parents Howard and Patricia, her late sister-in-law Lily Kaighin, and her friend and supporter in raising her children, Margaret Ann Oliver, who was another parent to her children.

Dianne was known to family and friends as a consummate “good” person–always happy, joyful, kind, welcoming, and warm. She rarely had a bad thing to say about anyone, instead finding the good in others. She was quiet, but when she spoke, people listened. Her smile was huge, and invited people into her joyful embrace of life. She kept friends for a lifetime. Her best friend and sister-in-law, Abby, for example, was her friend for 73 years!

Dianne enjoyed a wide array of activities. She loved the arts, for example, taking trips with friends and family to far away museums and plays and pursued a degree in Fiber Arts at Kent State University, where she earned a Master’s of the Arts. She volunteered for and supported the Trumbull Art Gallery (TAG) for many years and encouraged a love of the arts in her children and grandchildren, especially at the Chautauqua Institution.

From 1973 on, she spent every summer of her life at Chautauqua. A mainstay there, she built an incredible network of friends who shared their passion for lifelong learning, the arts, spirituality, sailing, tennis, and bridge. Perhaps her greatest joy at Chautauqua was opening her home for the summer to her children and grandchildren.

Dianne also loved to play games and participate in a variety of recreational activities. She spent her last summer in Chautauqua winning duplicate bridge tournaments. She was a regular tennis player there and in Warren and found great joy in being a mediocre skier, an activity that brought her together with family and friends for many years. She loved the meals she shared with family on ski trips, the long hours of board games, and the joy of just having fun with family.

She also pursued an accounting degree in the middle of her life and worked for a period of time for her uncle Lynn Grifiith at his law firm, helping balance the books.

Dianne lived in her grandparents ’home on Golf Drive for nearly fifty years. She used to ride her tricycle over to Golf Dr to see her grandmother, “Mom Kaighin,” where she knew she could get Pepperidge Farm cookies! She loved spending time, too, with her grandparents Lynn and Stata Griffith.

Dianne is survived by her three siblings and their spouses–Howard David Kaighin (Cindy), James Griffith Kaighin (Abby), and Karen Kaighin-Shields (Barry). She is also survived by her former husband and the loving father of her children, Frederick W. Martin. She and Fred had reconciled and enjoyed spending time together with their children and grandchildren for many years. Dianne is also survived by her three children, their spouses, and their grandchildren–Gregory Kaighin Martin (Courtney Byrne), and their children Lucille (Lucy) Comello Martin, Frances Caroline Martin, and Howard (Huck) Kaighin Martin; Amy Karen Gawtry (Stephen), and their children Ella Dianne Gawtry, Josephine Marie Gawtry, and William Harrison Gawtry; and Carrie Ann Martin and her children Kyle Kaighin Shuler, Henry James Shuler, and Howard Frederick Shuler.

There will be a Visitation at First Presbyterian Church at 10 a.m. on Saturday, February 28th, 2026, followed by a Memorial Service at 11 a.m. The family is also planning a memorial service for Dianne that will be held this summer, 2026, at the Chautauqua Institution. Details will be forthcoming.

In lieu of flowers, please consider donating in honor of Dianne K. Martin to The First Presbyterian Church, The Chautauqua Institution, or Planned Parenthood.