Q&A with Carolyn Belle on Diane Cooley Black

Remembering Our Housemother

Q: What is your role at the Delta Kappa Epsilon house?
A: I’ve been a cook for DKE for the past 18 years.

Q: How long did you work with Diane Black?
A: I worked with Miss Diane for three years, and I was the acting house mom before she came there after we lost our other house mom in 2009.

Q: What did Diane mean to you and the DKE members?
A: She meant a lot to us. The first time we met Miss Diane, we had our arms open wide. From that day, she was a fun-loving person and she cared for people so much. She always loved to tell a joke in the morning and was the same way till she left in the evening. The boys meant a lot to her too. She was shy in the beginning until she got to learning more about the boys, and she meant a lot to them.

Q: What will you miss about Diane?
A: She always had a smile on her face. We miss her and her energy very much. She never met a stranger and was ready to help. I remember once over a holiday, a homeless man came by and said he was hungry and without a job. She said it touched her heart and she made sure to give him something to eat. Any way she could help someone out she would do it, and she just had a heart for people. Even after Miss Diane got sick, she still had a really good spirit about her and always kept her personality and said she would be coming back to us. She was just such a loveable person, and I truly don’t have anything negative to say about her.

Q: Do you have any favorite memories about Diane?
A: I remember she was transferred to an assisted living facility, and a classmate of hers brought her to Alabama’s Homecoming. She called me and was very determined to make it there. It was the last time she got to visit the house. She never lost that smile, and even when she got sick she was always offering to help although she couldn’t. Diane wouldn’t let you know she was feeling sick. She loved her job and working with the boys, and she was a hilarious and great person to work with.