Diane Virginia Ellis Shields, 78,
was welcomed into the Kingdom of God
by her Lord and
Savior, Jesus Christ, her parents
Guy and Helen Ellis, her husband
David B. Shields, Sr., her
grandson Chase Brauda, and other
loving family members and friends on
September 2, 2019.
Born on January 28, 1941 in
Lewisburg, West Virginia, Diane was
raised in the quaint, little
town of Ronceverte, West Virginia in
the Greenbrier Valley. Down the road
in the town of
Alderson, Diane, a majorette for her
high school, would become the
sweetheart of the star
football player, David, who earned a
football scholarship to the
University of Tennessee.
Much to the chagrin of the Alderson
girls, David did not head to
Knoxville without first asking
for Diane’s hand in marriage. After
graduating from high school in 1959,
David and Diane were
married at the Saint Catherine’s
church in Ronceverte.
In 1962, Diane and her husband and
new born son, David B. Shields, Jr.
would leave Rocky Top
behind and become part of the Ware
County Gator community in Waycross,
Georgia. Over the
course of the next seven years,
Diane and David, members of St.
Joseph’s Catholic Church of Waycross, would welcome two more
children: a son, Gregory F. Shields,
and a daughter, Susan
D. Shields Brauda.
Throughout Diane’s life, she
contributed her talents to different
areas of vocation: Medical
Business Bureau, DeShazos, and Belks.
In the early 1970s, she also
contributed to the Waycross Area
Community Theater (WACT) both on and
off the stage. Later in life, Diane
would be a member of the Red Hat
Society and a group of friends who
dubbed themselves, the “Green
Screen Girls.” Even so, by her own
admission, Diane would proudly
attest that her greatest accomplishment was by far being a
Homemaker.
Whatever Diane’s outside pursuits
were, they always took a backseat
when it came to her family. Diane is
fondly remembered for her eye for
design and décor, breathtaking
floral arrangements, and
mouthwatering meals, including her
legendary home-made spaghetti sauce
and jambalaya. An avid football fan,
Diane supported the Ware County
Gators with season tickets for most
of her adult life and was quite
partial to former Green Bay Packers
QB, Brett Favre. As her children
grew to adulthood, so did her
family: daughter in laws, Sophie
Walker Shields (husband David),
Melissa Todd Shields (husband Greg);
son in law, Chad Brauda (wife
Susan); and her pride and joy – five
amazing grandchildren: David B.
Shields, III (Trey), Jessica E.
Shields, Sydney M. Shields, Morgan
M. Brauda, and Chase C. Brauda.
The family will be receiving friends
Tuesday evening (September 3, 2019)
at Music Funeral Home from 5 until 7
o’clock. Diane will be cremated and
her remains will be
transported at a later date to
Greenbrier Valley.
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