Diane Brabant

Diane Brabant, 59, of Marshall, NC, went home to be with the Lord in heaven, passing peacefully at Mission Hospital in Asheville on Monday, December 29, 2025.
Diane was born on February 19, 1966, in South Amboy, New Jersey to Marilyn Spears. Diane was a Veteran of the United States Navy, where she served as an Aviation Maintenance Administration Petty Officer at the Search and Rescue team in Fallon Nevada, from October 1986 until February 1990. She continued working with the Naval Air Station Fallon SAR team as a civilian until 1999. A gifted educator, Diane graduated from the University of Nevada – Reno with a bachelor's degree in Elementary Education in December of 2004. She then worked as a third-grade teacher in Virginia Beach, Virginia from 2004 to 2008. Diane then went on to obtain her second bachelor's degree in nursing in 2012 and worked as a Registered Nurse in Sebring, FL as well as Orlando FL, prior to relocating to western North Carolina. Diane worked as a Registered Nurse at Mission Hospital in Asheville from her arrival to North Carolina in December 2019 until 2021, when she enthusiastically returned to teaching. Her passion and dedication to the education of children led her to work as a fourth-grade schoolteacher in Madison County at Hot Springs Elementary School from 2021 until the end of the 2025 school year. That same passion and dedication were rewarded following the 2024 -2025 school year when she was named Teacher of the Year for Hot Springs Elementary School and Teacher of The Year for all of Madison County.
Left to cherish her memory is her husband, Ronald of Marshall, NC; sisters Cynthia Ludlow, Christine Lucas, and Donna Wishney; her brothers Donald, James, John, David, and Paul; and several special nieces, nephews, and friends, as well as the students who Diane had the immense pleasure of teaching.
A public gathering and viewing will be held at Madison Funeral Services on Saturday, January 10, 2026 from 4:00 to 6:00 pm. All who wish to attend are welcome. An interment will be held on Sunday the 11th at the Madison Hills Cemetery at 1:00 pm for family and invited guests.
The family would like to give thanks to the outpouring of support and love shown by friends, neighbors, and colleagues from Madison County Schools who know what Diane meant to the community.
In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be considered, in her name, to the Madison County Animal Shelter or any local organization that assists our community's children, as these are the things Diane held dear to her heart.