JUEL, Diane Carol (Staack) 1950-2020

JUEL, STAACK

Posted By: K. L. Kittleson
Date: 5/18/2020 at 17:44:18

Diane Carol Juel

March 11, 1950 - May 11, 2020

Diane (Staack) Juel, 70, of Cedar Falls, Iowa, died Monday, May 11, 2020, at NewAldaya Lifescapes memory care unit in Cedar Falls, Iowa, of Alzheimer’s disease.

Diane Carol Staack was born March 11, 1950, in Waterloo, Iowa, the daughter of Harry and Leona (Wedemeier) Staack. She was the third of three children, all girls, and grew up on the family farm in rural Readlyn, Iowa. When she was eleven, the family moved from the farm, first to Denver, Iowa and later to Tripoli, Iowa.

Diane attended school through junior high at Immanual Lutheran School at Klinger, rural Readlyn, Iowa. She attended high school at and graduated from Tripoli Community Schools in 1968. In high school she participated in basketball and regularly made the academic honor roll.

After high school, Diane attended the University of Northern Iowa for a year. On June 7, 1969, she was united in marriage with her high school sweetheart, Richard Juel, at Immanuel Lutheran Church, Klinger. Diane then entered the workforce to support the family while her husband completed his undergraduate degree. Diane worked at Allen Memorial Hospital in a clerical roll in the central supply department. The couple’s first child, a daughter, Shani, was born during this time.

After her husband graduated from college, the couple moved to Vinton, Iowa and Diane worked for Hawk Bilt Company as a secretary. Her second child, a daughter, Jenna, was born while the family resided in Vinton.

The couple moved to Cedar Falls, Iowa in 1976 and Diane went to work at the University of Northern Iowa as a secretary, first in the Health, Physical Education and Recreation department and later in the Theater department. Her third and final child, a son, Jordan, was born during this time.

Diane and her family moved to Dubuque, Iowa in 1984 and Diane went to work for A.Y. McDonald Company as a secretary in the engineering department.

In 1989 the family returned to Cedar Falls and Diane returned to UNI in a clerical role in the Facilities Planning Department. Diane advanced in her career at UNI reaching the position of Business Operations Manager in the Facilities Planning Department. In 2014 Diane retired from UNI earlier than she had planned after being diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. In 2019 Diane and Richard celebrated 50 years of marriage with their children and grandchildren.

In February of 2020 Diane moved from her home in Cedar Falls to the memory care unit at NewAldaya Lifescapes in Cedar Falls after her dementia progressed to the point that she could no longer be cared for at home.

In April of 2020 Diane suffered a sudden physical decline that required a five-day hospitalization. Her condition improved for a short period, but the dementia became more aggressive eventually depriving her of even the most basic physical abilities.

Before the Alzheimer’s disease precluded it, Diane was an avid reader and owned hundreds of books. She also enjoyed word search and crossword puzzles. She especially enjoyed spending time with her children and grandchildren and attended as many athletic, musical, and school performances as she could, often travelling over two hours one way to attend concerts and sporting events that lasted an hour or less. Diane was a UNI Panther athletic fan and season ticket holder for football, volleyball and men’s and women’s basketball and a Panther Scholarship Club supporter for over 20 years.

Diane was a member of Nazareth Lutheran Church in Cedar Falls. She was liked and respected by friends and co-workers alike for her warm personality, her caring nature, her helpful attitude, and an engaging sense of humor.

Diane is survived by her husband, Richard; daughter, Shani (Jack) Morgan of Marion, Iowa; daughter, Jenna Juel of Eldridge, Iowa; and son, Jordan (Kasey) Juel of Lincoln, Nebraska; four grandchildren, Drew and Emily Digman, Grayson Juel and Jonas Juel and three step-grandchildren: Gaby, Nick and Emma Morgan as well as twin granddaughters due in August of 2020.

She is also survived by two sisters, Janet Givens and Nancy Heinemann of Des Moines, Iowa; brothers-in-law, Dennis Juel of Waterloo, Iowa, Mark Juel of Imperial, California and Melvin Bergmann of Tripoli, Iowa; sisters-in-law Mary Jo Juel of Waterloo and Norma Juel of Imperial, California as well as numerous nieces and nephews.

She was preceded in death by her parents, Harry and Leona Staack; and parents-in-law, Harry and Mabel Juel; four brothers-in-law, Jae Givens, Chuck Gremmels, Lloyd Juel and Clifford Juel; three sisters-in-law, Jennifer Juel, Dolores Gremmels and Elaine Bergmann; a niece, Dawn Krueger; and a nephew, Mitch Bergmann.

Due to Covid19 restrictions there will be no public visitation or services. A private funeral service for Diane’s immediate family will be held. Burial will take place in Fairview Cemetery, Cedar Falls, Iowa at a later date. Dahl – Van Hove – Schoof Funeral Home in Cedar Falls is handling the arrangements. Condolences may be posted on their website at: www.dahlfuneralhome.com

Memorials may be directed to the Alzheimer’s Association or NewAldaya Lifescapes. The family is especially thankful to NewAldaya Lifescapes for their care of Diane and for allowing us to spend time with her at the end. We are also thankful for the care assistance provided by Cedar Valley Hospice. The Alzheimer’s Association helpline was a valuable resource multiple times as the disease progressed.

SOURCE: Dahl–Van Hove–Schoof Funeral Home