Diane L Geist

Yarmouth - Diane Linda Geist, 51, of Yarmouth, Maine passed away peacefully at home on the morning of January 15th, surrounded by her loving family.

Diane was born on July 22, 1959, in Fort Ord, California, where her father, Donald Geist, was stationed in the Army. She was raised in Buffalo, Cortland, and Plattsburgh, New York, where she excelled in academics and sports. She played several varsity sports, and was captain of the swim team. She was Valedictorian of the Plattsburgh High School, Class of 1977.

Diane was a year older than her brother Dale and two and a half years older than her sister Jan. The three were inseparable, with Diane always the ringleader.

Diane attended Cornell University, moved first to Colorado and then Arizona. She resumed her studies at Arizona State University in Tempe, earning numerous academic awards on the way to a B.S. in Education in 1985.

Diane married Kenneth Walker in 1986, and gave birth to her son, Keston Geistwalker, in 1990. She worked for several years as a math teacher at Tempe High School.

In 1993, the family moved to Otego, NY, where Diane gave birth to her daughter, Laine Geistwalker. In 1996, they moved to Yarmouth, where Diane eventually resumed her career as an educator. In 2000 her marriage to Ken ended.

Throughout her life, Diane relished physical activity, such as hiking in the canyons of Arizona and the coastal trails of Maine, and bicycling long distances. She twice completed the Trek Across Maine, a 3-day, 180-mile charity bike ride.

In addition to her deep involvement with the Merriconeag Waldorf School, which both Keston and Lani attended, Diane also spent considerable time pursuing spiritual growth. Most of Diane’s activities centered around her large circle of close friends, who lovingly cared for her and her children for many years.

Diane delighted in travel, visiting the Caribbean, Greece, Brazil, France, Mexico, and Canada, as well as numerous US destinations. Above all, she loved to make people laugh. No one who knew her could forget Diane's vibrant energy and her brilliant, playful mind.

In addition to her children and siblings, Diane leaves behind her mother and stepfather, Constance and Joseph Zelinski of S. Colton, NY; nephews Amos and Guthrie Geist, of Kenwood CA; a niece, Althea Lozefski, and a nephew, Christopher Milne, of Coventry, CT; and many wonderful friends. She is preceded in death by her father, Donald Geist, of Shelton, CT.

To accommodate out-of-state friends and relatives, a celebration of Diane's life will be held on her birthday, July 22nd. Please visit www.lindquistfuneralhome.com to share your condolences, memories and tributes with Diane’s family.

In lieu of flowers, please send donations to: Merriconeag Waldorf School, Attn: Lynne Espy, 57 Desert Rd., Freeport, ME, 04032; or: ACA Scholarship Fund, Camp Wawenock, 33 Wawenock Rd., Raymond, ME, 04071-6824.

“Let there be songs to fill the air”