Diane Savage

1961 - 2023

Diane Savage

Francestown, NH - Diane "DeeDee" List Savage was born in West Palm Beach, FL in 1961 to Robert and Cynthia List. She passed away on July 20, 2023 at age 61 after a long series of illnesses.

As a child, Diane was initially inspired by her mother's love of music to learn piano, which grew into a lifelong passion for the performing arts. She would attend Interlochen music camp in Michigan, where her versatility allowed her to play any instrument she chose – with piano, guitar, and bassoon being her favorites. With her perfect pitch, she could pick out and play any tune without needing to read sheet music.

Diane attended Palm Beach Day School and Pine Crest School in Ft. Lauderdale, where she excelled in both academics and sports, becoming fluent in both Spanish and French. She was a talented athlete, primarily playing tennis, volleyball, and basketball. Diane entered Wellesley College and majored in psychology with a minor in computer science graduating in the class of 1983. After college, Diane went on a multi-week solo adventure in Europe and then worked as an IBM systems programmer.

Diane and Lawrence Savage were married in 1988. Diane left employment in computing to raise a family in Sudbury, MA. Sons Matthew and Arthur joined the family. Diane inspired Matt's precocious musical ability at a very young age, and when Matt began an early musical career, Diane served as his manager. Through Diane's management, she and Matt would appear in multiple television programs and documentaries, and toured worldwide, including Singapore, the Caribbean, France, Spain, and Canada. Today, Matt continues Diane's musical legacy as an accomplished bandleader, composer, and music educator.

Larry and Diane moved to Francestown, NH in 2003 and founded Green Ledge Farm, where they founded one of the first and largest certified organic beef operations in NH. Diane's love of agriculture was inspired by her grandfather's cattle ranch in West Palm Beach, and she had a knack for finding quality livestock. She traveled all around New England to select the breeding stock for Green Ledge Farm's herd of heritage Belted Galloway cattle.

For much of her life, Diane was beset with many difficult and painful health issues. Her strength and determination were legendary through multiple surgeries and years of rehabilitation. She is remembered as a fighter, as a loving wife and mother, and for her incredible lifelong accomplishments even in the darkest days of her illness.

Husband Larry fondly remembers eight years of friendship blossoming into 34 wonderful years of marriage, love and children. Diane's sense of adventure, risk taking and vivaciousness were amazing and inspiring.

Diane is survived by husband Larry, sons Arthur and Matt, and siblings Martin List of West Palm Beach, FL and Karen List Broderdorp of Charlotte, NC.

The Savage family will hold a memorial and celebration of the life of Diane Savage at the Francestown Old Meeting House on Oct 14, 2023 at 2 pm. Friends and neighbors who knew Diane are welcome. In lieu of flowers, we ask for donations in Diane's name to the Autism Research Institute at autism.org.