Diane Marie Markus

Diane Marie Markus passed away into the hands of God on March 1st, 2023 at the age of 70 years, following an extended battle with ovarian cancer.  At the time of her passing she was blessed to be surrounded by her family.  Diane was born on February 10, 1953, in Fort Lewis, Washington.  When her father was honorably discharged from the Army, the family moved to Nampa, Idaho where Diane spent most all her life.

She had the fortunate experience to be the older sister to two brothers.  Growing up they loved swimming in the local pools and canals.  She especially enjoyed riding her horses (Pepper & Sitzka) and annually rode in the Nampa Stampede Rodeo Parade.  The entire family loved elk hunting and annually set up camp for the hunting season.  The family always had plenty of elk meat in the freezer.  Diane was always proud of the six-point elk she shot in 2012, just like her mother had.  The family elk hunting experiences have been passed on to the next generations and Diane was always thrilled to be up hunting with her dad, brother, son, and even grandson.

Attending Nampa schools (including a two-room schoolhouse until the 4th grade), she graduated from Nampa High School in 1971.  She went on to obtain her Associates Degree in Nursing at Boise State in 1978. She turned that education into a 40-year career in nursing.  The first 30 years she worked in the mother/baby unit of Mercy Hospital in Nampa and at St. Al’s in Boise.  The last 10 years of her career she moved to the field of public health as the Clinic Administrator for Southwest District Health.  Nursing was her passion and she felt blessed to assist in welcoming thousands of babies into the world.  It was extremely rewarding to her to have assisted in the birthing experiences of many family members and friends during her career.

Diane married Gerald Franssen in 1971 and during their 16 years of marriage they welcomed 3 children (Mindy, Amy & Joe) into the world.  The family enjoyed camping, riding motorcycles and spending time at the family cabin. 

After her children were grown, Diane married Thomas Ryan in 2000. They did not have children, but they had the companionship of two great dogs, first Roc, the boxer, then Zack, the labradoodle.  Diane and Tom enjoyed traveling almost annually to various resorts in Mexico.  They especially had great times on extended trips to Ireland and Thailand.  Together they hiked many miles in the Owyhee desert and mountains.  They bicycled the Weiser River Trail, the Hiawatha Trail, and almost completely around Coeur d’ Alene Lake.  There were many wonderful trips to the Oregon Coast.  Several great trips to Glacier National Park including a helicopter tour on each trip.  Lots of vacations to Seattle, Portland, Seattle and Walla Walla.  Diane was very grateful for Tom’s companionship and his efforts as a faithful and thoughtful caregiver during her illness.

Diane was so appreciative to have lived a full life.  She ran Robie Creek several times with her father, Amy, and Tom.  She loved fly fishing, snowshoeing, and hiking.  She hosted annual holiday parties for her family.   She put together Easter egg hunts for her grandchildren every year and of course hosted the Easter family dinner thereafter.  She enjoyed trips with her extended family to Disneyland, Butchart Gardens, Hawaii, and a great mother/daughter trip to Boston in 2021.

The other great love of her life was her seven grandchildren (Julia, Clayton, Cooper, Charlee, Dayton, Aubrey, and Lucy).  Collectively referred to as “Granny and the Magnificent Seven”.  Diane hardly missed any of their sports or other activities, often having to juggle to get to games that were on the same day but in other parts of the valley.  Diane carried a picture of her and the grandchildren to every trip to the hospital for chemotherapy treatment. She loved bragging about all of them to the nurses and doctors who treated her.

Diane was preceded in death by her parents, Lloyd and Sara Markus, her brother Russ, her in laws (Ted and Colleen Ryan); her sisters in law (Vicki Markus and Shauna Ryan) and a great-nephew Reece Hadlock.  She is survived by her partner Tom Ryan; brother Wayne Markus, her children and grandchildren Mindy & Ski Harris (Dayton and Lucy); Amy and Craig Nixon (Julia and Cooper); and Joe and Helenna Franssen (Clayton, Charlee and Aubrey); nieces Holly Markus (Dakota and Penelope), Abby (husband Sam and children Alex and Lydia) and Katie (Steele).  She is also survived by special family and friends, Sue Collins, Kris Slane, Connie Lupton, Sandy Merrick, Linda Rasmussen, Randy. and Nancy.

A prayer vigil will be held at St. John’s Cathedral Chapel in Boise on Thursday, March 9th at 5:00 pm. Services and a Celebration of Life are planned for Friday, March 10th at 11:00 am at Nampa Funeral Home. For those out of town and unable to make it in person, please go to www.nampafuneralhome.com for a live streaming link.

Diane will be greatly missed by her family and friends, but expressed immense gratitude that she has lived the life she has. She asked that in lieu of flowers, donations be made in her name to St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital, Heifer International, or to complete a random act of kindness.

The service will be live streamed and the link for that is: https://my.gather.app/remember/diane-marie-markus

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