Diane L. Silverman

Seabrook – Diane L. Silverman, 78 of Seabrook, formerly of Portland, ME, died Sunday, May 4, 2014 at the Exeter Hospital after a brief illness. She was born June 15, 1935 in Portland, a daughter of the late Rueben and Doris (Harriman) Cleaves. Diane was raised in Portland and attended Deering High School where she was an outstanding athlete and excelled in basketball. While in Portland she met and married the love of her life and husband of over 51 years, the late Jack I. Silverman. The couple moved to New Hampshire in the 1960s and Diane went to work for GTE Sylvania of Exeter. Diane was an avid bowler, loved gardening and playing golf. She and Jack were members at Abenaqui Country Club for many years and she also played for the Sylvania men’s golf team. She retired from Sylvania in the late 1990s and volunteered her time with the Stratham Community Church Clothes Attic and also as a voting station volunteer in Seabrook. Diane was a fantastic cook and especially loved preparing holiday meals for her family which always included the best apple pie in the seacoast. She was a skilled needlepoint artisan and would gift many of her fabulous wall hangings to friends and family. Diane had a great sense of humor, enjoyed playing practical jokes, was always fun to be around and was often the “life of the party.” She will be missed by all who knew and loved her. She leaves her four children, Shelley A. Green and husband Bill of Brewster, NY, Kerry A. Silverman and wife Donna of Elizabethtown, KY, Patricia Benoit and husband Les of Seabrook and Lee A. Silverman of Seabrook; her five grandchildren, Adam, Todd and Mark Green, Sara Morgan and Laura Byers; her brother, Stanley Cleaves and his wife Peggy of Rockland, MA; her sister-in-law Carol Cleaves of Yarmouth, ME; two great grandchildren and several nieces and nephews. In addition to husband, Jack, who died in 2011, she was predeceased by her brother, Richard Cleaves. A Graveside Service will be held at 11:00 AM on Saturday, May 31, 2014 in the Hillside Cemetery, Seabrook. Family and friends are respectfully invited. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to National Kidney Foundation, Inc., 30 East 33rd Street, New York, NY 10016, www.kidney.org/support/index.cfm.

Diane L. Silverman

June 15, 1935 - May 4, 2014