Darrel Clark
Diana was an amazing human being. She and Dink were my closest friends for many years, and the truth is, I credit Diana with saving my life. When I was in the darkest pit of my alcoholism, she didn’t walk away—she arranged for me to see a counselor and got me into a recovery program in Willows, California. If it weren’t for her, I might not be here today. Because of that intervention, I have not had a drink since May 10, 1984.
Some of my favorite memories come from our bowling league. Diana was the one who came up with our team name: Okole Maluna — Hawaiian for “bottoms up!” Now, think about that for a second: here I am, a real alcoholic, and my bowling shirt is basically yelling “cheers!” in Hawaiian. Diana thought that was hilarious, and honestly, so did I.
We spent hours bowling, playing lawn darts (back when lawn darts were legal and everyone still had their toes), and laughing until it hurt. I would be remiss if I didn’t mention Dink and Di’s “kids” at the time — Eric and Strider — two wonderful dogs who were just as much a part of the crew as the rest of us.
Life was good — full of laughter, bad bowling, great friends, and a whole lot of Hawaiian spirit.
