Diana Emily Smith, born January 22, 1938, died peacefully on September 28th in Southbury, CT. The daughter of Jasper and Emily (Lobdell) Smith, her childhood in Middlebury, CT, was spent keeping track of three boisterous younger brothers (Jonathan, Jerry, and Jeffrey) and modeling for them the value of education and learning. A graduate of St. Margaret's- McTernan school in Waterbury in 1955, Diana took her spirit and immense capacity across the country to Stanford University, where she excelled as one of a handful of women in their Class of 1959 and paved the way westward for two of her younger brothers.

From Stanford, Diana was recruited by the Central Intelligence Agency, where she spent 20 years stationed in various locations throughout Europe, including Helsinki, where she discovered her love of bright colors and ham and cheese sandwiches for breakfast, Stuttgart, where she fully embraced her passion for fast driving, Vienna, where she found architecture and music, and London, where she reinvigorated her lifelong love of gardening and rolling countryside. From the CIA, Diana furthered her work in foreign relations for the Department of Defense, engaging specifically on two SALT treaties concerning nuclear arms control in 1985 and with the Senate Foreign Relations Committee under the guidance of Senator Jacob Javits. It was here that she would be the only woman in the room when Khrushchev came to the State Department. Rising to the level of Minister, equivalent to a two-star general, she was again stationed throughout Europe, particularly in Naples, where she took along both her mother and her beloved Sonny Cat to keep the former company -- though Sonny Cat much preferred the company of the local feline population. She also spent ten years in Washington, DC, with influence across all continents. Throughout her European travels, Diana remained the glue that kept her family together and in touch.

After retiring from her life's work with the federal government, Diana returned to live in Woodbury, CT, and went back to school in interior design in New York City. She also was a strong voice and temperance in her younger brother, Jonathan's, personal finance business there.

A voracious reader and proponent of education, she was integral as a board member and guide to Chase Collegiate School (formerly St. Margaret-McTernan's, her alma mater), where she influenced the next generation of students and their faculty.

Perhaps most dear to Diana in her later years was her stewardship of the Naugatuck Women's Study Club, the primary mission of which is to challenge women to further their education and intellect by researching and writing papers on an assigned topic. 'Study Club', into which Diana followed in the footsteps of both her mother and grandmother, was her way of continuing to foster a deep understanding of international relations to further generations. Particularly adept at identifying topics for exploration, members were often "terrified" at the prospect of being assigned a topic by Diana but left with a deep understanding of a seemingly minor topic that, often years later, would be entirely relevant to world affairs: she was a true visionary who many thought would have made an excellent college professor. Her closest friends and certainly her family are better off for having considered her exactly that -- amongst her myriad other roles.

She will always be remembered for her dedication to the United States' influence around the globe on behalf of all humanity in the pursuit of peace, as well as for her tremendous wit and intellect, her love of family, fast cars, bright colors, the opera, impeccable gift-wrapping, martinis, and coffee ice cream, and cherished Sundays watching either baseball or football (depending on the season) and the Financial Times' weekend edition.

A memorial service and burial will take place in the near future, but not before springtime -- one of her favorite times of year. In lieu of flowers, please consider donations in any capacity to an educational charity of your choosing: they were all foundational to her pursuit of leaving this world a better place than when it is found.

To leave an online condolence, please visit www.munsonloveterefuneralhome.com