By
Diane Snyder
Died: February 18th, 2017
Obituary
We remember Diane Snyder. Diane Frances Snyder age 79, beloved mother and friend, passed away at home on February 18th, 2017. She is survived by three children William Lee Parr, Kellye Joiner and Dayna McAdams, and four grandchildren; Heather, Robert, Aydan and Chloe. A memorial service was held on Thursday February 23rd 2017. Diane was a devout lover of nature and animals. She first contacted Larkspur Conservation in 2016 before they had secured the purchase of the land now known as Larkspur Conservation at Taylor Hollow. Diane wished to have a tree planted on her grave at the time of her burial. When she learned of her wish could be granted she exclaimed, to executive director John Christian Phifer, “This just keeps getting better and better.” She chose an historical Bur Oak sapling that was grown from an acorn shed from the famous Mark Twain Bur Oak in Hanibal, MO. The sapling’s mother was planted as a seedling in 1721 outside the cave system where Samuel Clemens (Marks Twain) would play as a child. Twain would later write Huckleberry Finn and The Adventures of Tom Sawyer based on his childhood experiences there. The books are among the first major American literature to be written throughout in vernacular English, characterized by local color regionalism. The Bur Oak was supplied to Larkspur Conservation by American Heritage Trees, a nonprofit organization whose mission is to educate and share American history while promoting environmental stewardship. Diane was laid to rest in a private family ceremony on Earth Day, April 22, 2018, where the woodland meets the meadow, at Larkspur Conservation at Taylor Hollow. We will always remember Diane’s unwavering spirit and courage and we thank her for her living contributions to Larkspur Conservation.
