Diane Laurie
Diane Rebasz Laurie was born on February 15, 1946, to Marjorie and Brooks Laurie in Dayton, Ohio. Shortly after her birth, the family relocated to Los Angeles, California, where her father worked as an aeronautical engineer at McDonnell-Douglas.
A natural talent in the arts, Diane grew up playing piano, writing poetry, and drawing. She became a gifted, accomplished artist by her teens, and her prolific creative output remained a lifelong passion.
After graduating from Newport Harbor High School in 1964, Diane studied Art and Literature at California State University, Northridge.
In the early 1970s, Diane married Christopher O’Keefe, and not long after, they moved to Northern California with their son, Sean. Diane pursued a degree to become a psychiatric technician at Santa Rosa Junior College and went on to work at Sonoma State Hospital as a Licensed Psychiatric Technician. During this period, she lived along the Russian River in Guerneville, where she developed a distinctive and intuitive pen-and-ink technique characterized by fluid, stream-of-consciousness expression.
Following her divorce in the late 1970s, Diane returned to Los Angeles, continuing both her artistic pursuits and her work in psychiatric care. In 1982, she earned her degree in Psychology from CSUN.
Later, Diane married nuclear physicist Dr. Donald Farmer and embarked on extensive postgraduate studies in computer science and mathematics. In 1991, the couple moved to Sonoma County and settled in Sebastopol.
Diane could be described as a true Renaissance soul-her broad range of interests and deep, enduring passion for the arts, psychology, mathematics, and technology defined her life. To those lucky enough to call her a close friend, Diane was known for her kindness, compassion, loyalty, talent, humility, and brilliance. She was funny and effortlessly cool-all this wrapped in an elegant and petite stature.
Diane was predeceased by her father, Brooks Laurie; her mother, Marjorie Laurie; and her husband, Dr. Donald Farmer. She is survived by her son, Sean O’Keefe; daughter-in-law, Susanne O’Keefe; granddaughter, Christalyn O’Keefe; grandson, Joshua Conroy; and two first cousins, Stephanie Buffington and Judith Blanchard.
Services will be held on Monday, July 28, 2025, at Daniels Chapel of the Roses Funeral Home, located at 1225 Sonoma Ave, Santa Rosa, CA 95405. Viewing will take place from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM, followed by a service at 2:00 PM. Burial will be held at 3:00 PM at Sebastopol Memorial Lawn Inc, located at 7951 Bodega Ave, Sebastopol, CA 95472.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to an organization of your choice.