DIANE LOUISE RIDLEY

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DIANE LOUISE RIDLEY

Diane Louise Ridley passed away peacefully on Monday, June 1, 2026, at St. Boniface Hospital, at the age of 79.

Diane will be remembered by her husband of 55 years, Brian; her son, Jason (Cyndi); her grandson, Liam; her sister, Shirley Matheson; her high school friend, Linda Boyd; as well as aunts, cousins, nieces and nephews in the Skihar, Rolla, Ridley and Hymers families.

She was predeceased by her parents, Anne (Skihar) and John Rolla, and by her brother, Mervin.

Born on April 19, 1947, Diane grew up in Winnipeg’s North End and graduated from St. John’s High School and Tec Voc High School. She began her career as a secretary at MacLeods and spent nine years as an executive secretary at Crippen-Acres Engineering.

After the birth of her son, Jason, in 1977, Diane devoted several years to caring for her family at home. She later returned to the workforce in part-time secretarial positions with M.T.S., I.B.M. and several legal firms, followed by roles at Canada Post and the Canada Revenue Agency, where she worked for 25 years before retiring at the age of 72.

Diane was a creative and talented woman who took great pride in making many of her own work clothes. She enjoyed sewing, particularly with her serger, and also loved oil painting. She was well known for preparing turkey dinners at Thanksgiving or Christmas, and for the backyard garden she tended for many years, especially the tomatoes, cucumbers, onions, rhubarb, and zucchini. There is nothing like a fresh cucumber sandwich on white bread.

Over the past 15 years, she enjoyed renovating and redecorating our home in East St. Paul. She also enjoyed listening to the Canadian National Anthem before hockey games and appreciated hearing “O Canada” instead of “O Canida”, sung properly and not as a jazzed-up pop song. She was a devoted Winnipeg Jets fan.

Diane enjoyed travelling to Florida to visit Brian’s sister and her husband, Albert, as well as trips to Thunder Bay, McCreary and Dauphin to visit relatives, and to Mazatlán and on Caribbean cruises, along with shopping trips to Fargo and Grand Forks. She also cherished time spent caring for Diva and Larry, her grand-dog Shih Tzus.

The family extends its sincere thanks to Dr. Huot, nurse Nicole, and the Palliative Care team at St. Boniface Hospital for their care and compassion.

Diane has been cremated and her eyes donated to Tissue Bank Manitoba. She will be interred in an outdoor columbarium at Green Acres Cemetery. A Celebration of Life will be held on Friday July 3, 2026 at 11:00 am at Klassen Funeral Home.

In lieu of flowers, donations in Diane’s memory may be made to CancerCare Manitoba.

Tributes: www.KlassenFuneralHome.com

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As published in Winnipeg Free Press on Jun 13, 2026