02/07/2022
Dianna Lynn (Anderson) Brause/Bangs was born on June 6, 1946, at the Knoxville Hospital to parents Clarence James & Beulah Bell Agnes Anderson.
Dianna was raised on a farm at RR 3, just about 10 miles northeast of Knoxville. She had two older sisters; Margaret and Judy and a younger brother and sister that were twins, Robert and Robyn. Their farm was adjacent to Walter & Anna Anderson’s farm, Dianna’s grandparents. She spent her time between both farms following her parents and grandparents around as they worked their farms. It was an ideal childhood for her.
Dianna went to school at the West River Ridge Country School from K-6. She attended Knoxville Junior High and High School, graduating in 1964.
Following graduation, she married Leslie Paul Brause on June 26, 1964, and became a housewife and mother to four sons, Paul James, Scott, Joe, and Rod. The family lived in Knoxville for the first eight years of their marriage. The family moved to the Muscatine area of Iowa for a few years before settling down in Gilbert, Iowa in the spring of 1972.
All four sons graduated from Gilbert High School and Dianna was very involved with the children’s activities. She joined the Gilbert Athletic Boosters and was an officer of the club for many years. She particularly took joy in attending her sons’ events and taking photographs of them and their friends. Dianna and her husband Paul divorced in 1987.
On August 28, 1991, Dianna married Dave Bangs, lovingly referred to as Bangs, also of Gilbert and with that union, she welcomed Dave’s four children; Vicki, Steve, Cori, and T.J. into her family. Dave’s children also grew up and graduated from Gilbert High School and were all about the same age as the Brause Boys, thus they were already part of the family. Both Dianna and Bangs were always very proud of the eight children.
Dianna began working for Sears in 1974 and retired in 2005. During her years with Sears, she worked at the Ames North Grand location, then transferred to the Merle Hay Mall location in Des Moines. Her last assignment was with Sears.com in West Des Moines, where she helped launch and manage that segment of business for the company. The couple moved to Ankeny in 1998 when Dianna transferred to Merle Hay Mall and moved to Ames in 2013 to be in a more central location to their grandchildren in Iowa.
In the fall of 2013, Dianna’s husband Bangs took a part-time position with Stevens Memorial Chapel in Ames, and about a year later Dianna followed suit and joined the staff there as well. In July 2014, Dianna became the Office Manager for Stevens. She loved working with families and the caring professional management and staff within the organization. It was a rewarding experience for her.
She and Bangs were big wrestling fans and followed ISU to the national championships for many years. However, she enjoyed babysitting her grandkids and playing board & video games with them when they were small, and attending their sporting and music events when they grew up. Her greatest joy and pride was always her family. She was devoted to her husband, children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren.
Dianna died Feb 7, 2022, and is survived by her husband Dave Bangs; sons, Paul James (Shayleen) Brause, Scott (Renee) Brause, Joe (Susie) Brause, Rod (Amy) Brause, Steve Bangs, Cori Bangs, and T.J. (Rachel) Bangs; daughter, Vicki (Waleed) Alqablani; siblings, Bob Anderson, Margaret Anderson, Judy (Carl) Patterson, and Robyn Anderson; 11 grandchildren; 8 great-grandchildren (and one on the way).