Diane Marie Dance
Diane Dance (Bearden) was born March 25, 1946, to her proud mother Bebe Anna Smith, from Charlottesville, Virginia who preceded her death. Diane was her mother’s second oldest child. Her siblings are Marlene V. Hairston (Deceased), Violet R. Smith, Jonathan Earl Smith, Ronnie Bearden, Sr. (Deceased) and Gene “Monty” Bearden (Deceased).
Diane attended Cleveland Public Schools where she completed her G.E.D. She met DeWayne Williams and they were married, and from this union three children were born, Donna, Donald, and Darlene. After her marriage ended, she attended Cuyahoga Community College. During her years of employment, Diane worked as waitress at F.W. Woolworth’s in downtown Cleveland, as a secretary at Metzenbaum Social Service Agency, and as a Division Secretary at University Hospitals of Cleveland. Years later, she worked at the U.S. Postal Service as a service clerk and later advanced to the position of manager.
After her retirement from the Post Office, she became an entrepreneur and founded her own minority woman-owned small business in 1992, Word Med Inc., a medical transcription company. 2022 marks the 30th anniversary of her business, and Diane was happy to celebrate the accomplishment.
Diane loved all that life had to offer. She loved to laugh about almost anything and had the most beautiful smile that she shared with everyone. As the Matriarch of her family, she loved and nurtured her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. She was affectionately known as “Grannie Ma” or “Grannie” for short. She delighted to celebrate each of their birthdays in her home.
Diane had incredible strength of character as displayed in the way that she went above and beyond to ensure that her children would have the best things that life has to offer. As a single parent, many times Diane worked two jobs to support her family. She was able to purchase their first family home in East Cleveland, Ohio. Years later, she purchased a second home in Shaker Heights, Ohio and her final home in Solon, Ohio where she resided at the time of death.
Diane enjoyed having fresh flowers, and her son Don bought them frequently for her. She also loved playing Bid Whist, being silly with her card-mates, traveling with family and friends to Las Vegas and Florida, listening to music and watching her favorite soap opera, The Young and the Restless. Diane adored her grandchildren and took every opportunity to spend quality time with them. She was very proud of their achievements.
On Friday, January 21, 2022, Diane passed away peacefully at Hillcrest hospital. Diane leaves to treasure her memory, her children, Donna Walker (Ralph), Donald Williams, and Darlene Shaver (Rob, deceased); grandchildren Darnell Sanders (Natalie), Dontez Sanders (Renee), Dominique Williams, Donald Williams II, D’Angelo Williams and Donisha Cooper; great grandchildren, Layanna, Daylin, Draya, Drew, Naomi, Eric “EJ” and Mila; and siblings Violet R. Smith, Vickie Smith, and Jonathan Earl Smith, as well as many other relatives and close friends.