Obituary of Dian Louise Ross

Dian Louise Ross was born in Portland, Oregon on April 16, 1923 and died in Portland, Oregon on June 1, 2019. She was born to Fred Ross, a labor attorney, and his wife, Louise Imogen Cowden Ross, a homemaker and seamstress. At the early death of her father, Dian became a mainstay for her siblings as the oldest daughter; she would cook and clean and assist in the rearing of the other children as her mother held employment to provide for the family. As World War II came upon Dian’s teenage years, she would serve the war effort near Gooding, Idaho being trained to track storms and spot enemy planes. After the war, Dian worked as a secretary on Wall Street in New York City. She was also employed in a same capacity in Denver, Colorado prior to returning to Oregon. Her long-time employment was as an executive secretary at Tektronix, a technology organization, based in the Portland, Oregon area. She retired early from Tek to care for her aging mother. Dian was preceded in death by siblings, Laurids Ross, Fred Ross, Laurel Virginia “Ginny” Strandholm, and David Ross. She is survived by two sisters-in-law and many nieces and nephews. Dian had a love for travel, weaving, music (especially jazz), cooking, cats, astrology, and gardening. She enjoyed dancing and even took a belly dancing class which ended with several performances. Dian loved multicultural foods and was an avid recipe collector. Dian never married but had many friends with whom she travelled, enjoyed social events, and attended local community gatherings. She loved to host parties at her Sellwood home before moving to her King City residence. In her last few years she resided in Milwaukie, Oregon. She was a member of the Tigard Historical Society (secretary), the Herb Society (president and secretary), and the Red Hat Club. In her later years, Dian loved to follow the news and political interests on television and sending out e-mails, watching family and friend activities on Facebook, and playing games on her computer. A Celebration of Life will be held on Sunday, July 7, at the home of Jill and Jimmy Brown, 15400 Arborview Court, Oregon City, Oregon, 97045. The time is 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.