Diane Lee Finnerty
FINNERTY, GETZ, JACK, WRIGHT, CESPEDES-FINNERTY, ODERKIRK, PINCKNEY
Posted By: Sarah Fletcher (email)
Date: 1/3/2020 at 10:24:44
Diane Lee Finnerty, 59, of Iowa City, died peacefully December 29, 2019, at home.
Diane was born on August 9, 1960, in Des Moines, Iowa to Thomas E. Finnerty and Lucille (Getz) Finnerty.
Diane is survived by her beloved spouse Jill Ann Jack; her children, Jennifer (Kris) Wright and Jorgito Cespedes-Finnerty; her dear sister Cheryl (Paul) Oderkirk; brother Scott (Diana) Finnerty; and beloved aunt to Mathew Pinckney, Meredith (Brian) Scott, Brenna Finnerty, Craig Finnerty, Allison Finnerty, James A. Jack (Jennifer), Christopher H. Jack (Stephanie), beloved great aunt to Ava, Gabriel, Ellis, Luke, Bennett, Ashley, Jimmy, Brooklynn and Kailani.
She was preceded in death by her parents; her brother, Craig Finnerty; beloved sister in law to James R. Jack (Mary Ann); Tim W. Jack (Sue); and beloved family member, Linda Bolton.
Diane was at her core an activist, writer, social justice educator, parent, friend, builder of community, and committed to creating a more ethical and just world.
Diane’s activism spanned decades from her early college years as a feminist activist creating safe spaces for women, involvement in the peace movement, and in human rights world-wide. You could frequently find her speaking or singing protest songs at rallies around the state. When she moved to Iowa City she worked at the Emma Goldman Clinic and continued to grow community through her grassroots activism, including as a founder of the Rainbow Families group for queer parents and kids. Her role as activist and social justice educator extended throughout Iowa and beyond. She helped create an equitable community through her work on the RAICES Project, a multi-year campus/community collaboration to build Latino capacity in rural communities. Diane’s work with the White Privilege Conference was critical to her social justice work intellectually, emotionally, and in community building. She was a board member for the Center for Worker Justice of Eastern Iowa and advocated against discrimination as Commissioner for the Iowa City Human Rights Commission. She also served on the statewide planning committee for the Strengthening and Valuing Latino Communities.
Diane’s career at the University of Iowa spanned more than 25 years, most recently holding the position of Assistant Provost for Faculty, Office of the Provost. In her work at the University she committed herself to being a relentless advocate to create community and a more inclusive campus. Her successes garnered many honors including the Diversity Catalyst Award, Sue Buckley Distinguished Achievement Award for Staff, Iowa City Human Rights Commission Rick Graf Award, David J. Skorton Staff Excellence Award in Service and Iowa Board of Regents Staff Excellence Award. Though she was always surprised and touched by these acknowledgements, she believed the work was an honor in and of itself. She dedicated her life to social justice.
Diane loved spending time with her family and her beloved community at our many gatherings big and small. She cherished these times together, as she often said “Community is so much more then the coming and passing of individuals. It is about community and what we do and don’t do as members of these beautiful gatherings, events, and histories.”
A memorial service to celebrate Diane’s life will be held on Sunday, January 26, 2020, at 1:00 pm at The Park Lodge at the Terry Trueblood Recreation Area located at 579 McCollister Blvd, Iowa City, IA 52240
In lieu of flowers donations can be directed to Jorgito's Educational fund ugift529.com (ugift code R0K-J8D),Center for Worker Justice (Iowa City), or to the National Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition www.boardingschoolhealing.org
Lensing Funeral & Cremation Service
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