Diane Adelaide Steinle (née Hoeffer) passed away on July 7, 2025 after suffering a stroke in May. She was surrounded by her family’s love and in the most peaceful care at the Jack Byrne center. She was 78 years old.
Born on April 10, 1947, in Hartford, Conn., Diane was the daughter of Paul Albert Hoeffer and Adelaide Hofmann Hoeffer. She was raised in West Hartford alongside her beloved brother Andrew Hoeffer, who predeceased her. Diane’s early education was at Renbrook School, followed by Stoneleigh-Burnham School in Greenfield, Mass. She graduated from Centenary College in New Jersey and later pursued nursing at Columbia University School of Nursing.
In 1970, Diane married and spent several years at the Caribbean resorts of RockResorts where her then-husband, John, worked. She later lived in Manhattan (1973–1978), then in Darien, Conn., for over four decades raising her family and creating community there, before moving to Woodstock, Vermont in 2023.
Diane’s greatest joy was her family. She was a devoted and loving mother to Jay and Kate Steinle, and the proud grandmother — “Baba” — to six grandchildren (Marina, Nicholai, Xander, Finn, Henry, Atlas), whom she adored unconditionally and cared for with boundless love and generosity. A close second were her dogs — her own as well as those she cared for when she refused to ‘retire’ from her dog walking business.
The family was blessed to have time with Diane before her passing, filled with moments of joy and presence. We thank the compassionate caregivers at Dartmouth-Hitchcock and the extraordinary team at Jack Byrne Center for making our mother peaceful in hospice.
A memorial service is being planned for the fall in Darien, Connecticut. In lieu of flowers, we ask you to consider a donation made in Diane’s memory to the Jack Byrne Center: https://dhgeiselgiving.org.
