Diane J. Stewart (Bazeley)

Diane was born in South Kensington, London, U, on December 14, 1925 to Leslie Lowick Bazeley and Eileen Alice Bazeley-Ambrose. At the age of nine, she started dancing with the Italia Conti Stage School in London, England, and later with the Audrey De Vos Ballet School. Diane spent her youth performing in movies and on the London Stage, and dancing at the London Palladium well into her twenties. She specialized in ballet, jazz, tap and synchronous line-dancing.

During World War II, Diane traveled through Europe as part of the British USO company ENSA, where she performed for the British troops on the front lines, helping to lift their spirits and bolster their courage while airstrikes continued overhead. She toured through Normandy, France, Belgium and Holland, surviving a bombing that killed two British soldiers before the show was over. In 1953-54, she joined a Western Show that traveled throughout Germany, Austria, Italy and France, which soon broke the record for most popular show entertaining troops at that time.

After the war, Diane was sponsored to come to New York in 1954, where she worked at Avis Rent-a-Car and met her late husband, John C. Stewart. Diane's legacy in America began when she opened her first dancing studio on South Street in Rhinebeck, New York. For over a decade, she taught ballet, tap, modern jazz and acrobatics to adults and children alike, hosting dance recitals and recruiting her children to perform in shows alongside her students.

Diane also lived briefly in Hyannis and Brewster, MA, where she focused on raising her family and provided them with a full, homemade meal every night. After several years, she returned to New York and began work as the night manager of Pawling Health Manor while teaching dance and fitness classes part-time. At the age of 70, she became a citizen of the United States, but held onto her British citizenship out of love for her home country.

Diane is survived by daughter Julie Howes and her husband Charles of Brewster, MA; son John Stewart of Brewster, MA; daughter Patricia Stewart of Red Hook, New York; and daughter Christine Contilli of Port Richey, Florida. Diane also leaves behind nine grandchildren: Nicole and Angela Howes, Jessica Stewart, Joseph and Nikolas LaVigne, Dylan Snow, Lisa Contilli-Gould, and Ashley and Michael Molina, along with seven great-grandchildren.

Diane spent her retirement years living in Rhinebeck and often journeying to Cape Cod to spend summers at her son's house in Brewster. She was the life of the party at family cookouts and an avid Red Sox fan, despite living in New York for much of her life. Diane will always be remembered for her ability to light up a room with her infectious smile and fighting spirit.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made out to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, 501 St. Jude Place, Memphis, TN 38105-1905. For online condolences, please visit www.doanebealames.com.