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DIANNE STARCHER WEAVER (1950-2026) "The Wind Beneath My Wings" |
| (09/09/2026) |
 By Bob Weaver 2026 52 years ago were united in marriage, a small service at St. Johns United Methodist Church in Spencer. Little was I to know it was the best decision of my lifetime, shared jointly with a decision 47 years ago to do whatever it took to recover from alcoholism, a commitment I would likely never have made had it not been for Dianne. Following our wedding, we took her brother to Duke University to treat his cancer. Low on funds we came back to Cranberry River, Richwood, to spend the night in a cabin, wood fire with outhouse, the temperature barely above zero. Realizing I was broke, I drove to service station in Richwood, telling the owner my plight. He advised me to write a check for $30 to get home. Those first five years of marriage rather daunting, me being a full-fledged alcoholic, at times "moving on up while falling down" in the world of business, but reaching a point of hitting bottom. One of my several careers being a mortician in Spencer, Clay, Buckhannon and owning a funeral home in Weston, your friendly alcoholic mortician. I drank it up, and life was bleak, but it was a new beginning as a sober man. Dianne learned to do many things that would get me into recovery and continued to support my efforts while we lived in a small 8x30 foot trailer in a pine thicket in the Village of Hur - the Owls Nest, while she worked as a daycare provider in Grantsville. As a recovering alcoholic a call came to help start an addiction treatment center in Kingwood, then starting a center in the Wheeling WV area, endeavors I followed during my adult life. Fascinatingly, after the mental health folks chased after me, they elected me the president of the West Virginia Addiction Counselors. From early on, she had a great work gene, embarking on many endeavors from working for Spnceer Newspapers to being a NY fashion buyer for a department store, a funeral home assistant, to working on social justice issues and being a longtime activist with Challenge WV, a group that supported keeping small community schools. I have had a blessed life with her, clear to say life's small and greater accomplishments, without her would be diminished. Returning to Calhoun 30 years ago, She has was the "wind beneath my wings," more industrious in the business of living, loving, caring and supporting than ever I could imagine. More often than not, she was even smarter. Her dedication to pumping out the Hur Herald for 25 years in the midnight hour, speaks loudly to her work hardiness. Her prayers for family and friends were lifted quietly every day, imbued by her concern, love and dedication. If I could carry a tune, I would sing it for her:
When I am down, and, oh, my soul, so weary
You raise me up to walk on stormy seas
You raise me up to walk on stormy seas
You raise me up to walk on stormy seas
You raise me up to walk on stormy seas
A celebration of life will be held Sunday, October 4 at 2 p.m. at the Hur Church with the Rev. David Weaver officiating, with her ashes to be scattered on "The Knob," a woodlands place she cherished daily from our window.
7697 Pine Creek Road, Mt. Zion WV 26151
jonweaver954@gmail.com
304-354-6183
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