Diane Lee Willenberg

Lakeway - Diane Lee Mears was born in Rocester, VT on July 28th, 1949 to Donald and Mary Mears. She was the second child of four, and the only daughter. She looked up to her older brother, Dale, and looked after her younger brothers David and Michael. Her family moved to Austin, TX when she was 3 years old. Growing up, Diane spent a lot of time on her own, so she learned to be independent and resourceful.

Diane attended Travis High School in Austin, and during her junior year, a sophomore named Mike Willenberg joined her mixed choir class. As part of Mike's initiation, he stood on a chair and sang an operatic version of "Mary Had a Little Lamb". Diane knew right then and there that he was the one for her.

In 1969, Diane joined the Internal Revenue Service in Austin where she worked for over thirty years, before retiring in 2000 as a Criminal Investigation Supervisor. Throughout her successful career, she always prioritized her family and friends above all else.

Mike and Diane got married on June 26th, 1970 at Faith United Methodist Church in Austin. They had their first son, Seth, in 1974, and their second son, Trent, in 1975.

In 1979, Diane and Mike started Oak Hill United Methodist Church in South Austin with 64 total members, which has now grown to 804.

Between 2006 and 2009, Diane and Mike were blessed with four grandkids, Cole, Avery, Brooklynn and Violet. Diane became "DD", and Mike became "PaPa", and their grandbabies became the light of their lives.

After they both retired, Diane and Mike moved to Lakeway, TX in June of 2015. They joined Lakeway Church in 2019, where they rededicated their lives to serving God and others by delivering meals to the needy, and becoming leaders in their church and community. Diane joined the Ladies Lakeway Golf Association (LLGA9) in 2020, became Vice President in 2022, and President in 2023.

Diane passed early in the morning on October 12th, 2023. She was 74 years old, and she and Mike enjoyed over 53 special years of marriage. Diane is survived by her younger brothers, David and Michael, her husband, Mike, her sons, Seth and Trent, her daughters-in-law, Lilly and Amber, and her grandchildren, Cole, Avery, Brooklynn and Violet.

Diane was a determined, loving and compassionate person, a strong leader, and a force of nature. She was a loving daughter, sister, wife, mother and friend. A celebration of her life will be held in the near future at Lakeway Church. Please contact the Willenberg family or Lakeway Church for more information.

If you would like to honor Diane, please donate to Meals on Wheels Central Texas.