Diane Gore Obituary

Captain Diane Duhamel "DD" Gore, USNR (Retired), died April 17 at Eisenhower Medical Center in Palm Springs, CA, with her sister, Nancy, at her side.

DD was born Sept. 16, 1934 in Ketchikan, AK, the youngest child of Judge Lester and Irene Duhamel Gore. She loved music, playing the piano and saxophone. She was outstanding on the dance floor, remembered the words to countless songs, and loved to sing.

DD graduated Ketchikan High School in 1952 and San Jose State University in 1956. She joined the U.S. Navy and served in Key West, FL, Newport, RI, and Washington, D.C. In 1959, as lieutenant junior grade, she retired from active duty and transferred to the U.S. Naval Reserve. There she became one of the earliest women to reach the upper ranks; in 1981, she was the only woman in the U.S. to reach the rank of USNR captain.

DD then joined the civil service, working for the U.S. Army on posts including Fort Lewis, WA; Vicenza, Italy; and Heidelberg, Germany. She was stationed at Fort Richardson when the Good Friday earthquake struck Anchorage in 1964. For many years, her work focused on providing services to military youth and dependents; she was one of only two recreation specialists Army-wide in the advanced grade of GS-12 managing the youth activities program in the U.S. and Europe. She spent many years in Europe, and on her days off loved to explore, speeding down the autobahn in her convertible.

In the late '90s, DD retired to Palm Desert, CA. She maintained a close relationship with her widespread family, especially her nieces, creating the "GGs"--"Gore Girls"--who descended on her annually to eat ice cream, sing, shop, and plot to save the world. She especially enjoyed traveling to reunions with her Delta Gamma sorority sisters, high school friends, and the annual "Ketchikan picnics".

DD is survived by her sister, Nancy (Frank) Murkowski, of Wrangell, AK and Palm Desert; and her brothers, Charles Millard Gore of Stockton, CA and Bob Gore of Ketchikan, AK. She is also survived by her nieces and nephews: David Gore of Goleta, CA; Richard Gore of London, England; Mary Gore Schroder and Anne Gore Hart of Anchorage, AK; Jenny Gore Dwyer of Kenmore, WA; Carol Sturgulewski of Anchorage; Lisa Murkowski of Anchorage and Washington, D.C.; Mike Murkowski of Sao Paolo, Brazil; Eileen Van Wyhe of Fairbanks, AK; Mary Judson of Fairbanks and Manzanillo, Mexico; Brian Murkowski of Houston, TX; John Couch of Los Angeles and Julie Ray of Stockton. She is also survived by their spouses, children and grandchildren, and by many loving friends. She was preceded in death by her parents and her nephew-in-law, Pat Dwyer.

A celebration of life will be held in Palm Desert, CA on her birthday, September 16. A family Mass will be held in August in Ketchikan. A full military burial will be at Fort Richardson. In lieu of flowers, her family suggests memorial contributions to Sacred Heart Church of Palm Desert, CA.