Carolyn Dian Leath

Carolyn “Dian” Leath passed away on January 5th, 2026, at the age of 81, surrounded by her children and grandchildren, after a years-long battle with dementia. She was a beloved mother, granny, sister, aunt, and friend.

Dian was born on September 13, 1944, in New Castle, Indiana. She grew up in Ft. Wayne, Indiana and graduated from South Side High School in 1962. She attended Purdue University where she was a member of Alpha Phi Sorority, earning a degree in Education in 1966. She married shortly after and moved to Jamaica with the Peace Corps. She then began her family in Southern California, where she earned her CPA and worked as an accountant. During her second marriage she moved to South Florida, where she returned to elementary education. She eventually returned to Indiana to be closer to family.

Dian played both the violin and piano and passed on her love for music to her children. She was fiercely independent and enjoyed her solitary time, watching news or game shows or working on her word puzzles. She was a lover of good grammar, vocabulary, and enunciation and always had a dictionary nearby for reference. She was a great conversationalist as well.

She is survived by her children: Katie Flowers of Fishers, IN (children Abbie and Jacob Quesenberry and Lee Flowers); Elizabeth Ruiz of Fishers, IN (husband Jim and sons Gabriel, William, and Matthew); John Flowers of Granada Hills, CA (wife Jen and daughters Kira and Bella); Christian Torres of Los Angeles, CA; Benjamin Leath of Gainesville, FL; and siblings: Marcia Leath of Oakland, CA (husband Bob Okumura); Richard Leath of Berkeley, CA (wife Miftah and children Harlan and Marcella); Doris Leath of Brooklyn, NY (husband Barry Strugatz and children Emma and Molly).

She is preceded in death by her parents, John and Marjorie Leath, and grandson Joseph Quesenberry.