Diane Cappel

Diane Dee Cappel, 76, of West Des Moines, Iowa, and formerly of Atlantic, Iowa, passed away Friday, January 18, 2019, at Kavanagh House in Des Moines, Iowa.

Diane was born July 5, 1942, in Atlantic, Iowa, the daughter of Wayne and Ethel (Nelson) Hoffman. They lived in various towns in southwest Iowa while Diane was growing up, but she graduated from Atlantic High School in 1960. Diane then attended both The University of Omaha and Creighton University where she studied business and accounting. After school, she returned to Atlantic, living with her beloved Grandpa and Grandma Nelson. She worked at both the Atlantic State Bank and Walnut Grove.

In 1964, she was set up on a date with Dick, a fellow AHS alum, whom she picked up for their first date in her Corvair convertible. That started a love affair that lasted over 52 years. She was united in marriage to Dick Cappel on January 31, 1965 and she dove headfirst into being a loving wife and mother. They were parents to Bob, Doug and Rebecca, and her life was devoted to her children. She was a regular school “room mother”, Cub Scout den leader, and ran the junior golf program for a number of years at the Atlantic Golf and Country Club. Diane and Dick were active in the Jaycees and the Elks. She was a voracious reader and once commented that she would read basically “anything on the printed page”. She was also a member of the First United Presbyterian Church.

As much as she enjoyed being a wife and mother, grandmother might have become her most cherished role. After Maddie and Alex were born, she committed to spend as much time with them as she could. She and Dick attended many of their activities while living in Atlantic. After they both retired from Cappel’s Ace Hardware in 2010, they moved full time to West Des Moines, and became fixtures in each of their lives. They also loved getting to know the friends and families of those who loved their children and grandchildren in the Des Moines Christian School community. Even after Dick’s passing Diane rarely missed anything Alex or his friends were participating in at school.

Diane is survived by her son, Doug (Jennifer) Cappel; grandchildren, Maddie and Alex; daughter-in-law Heather; brother, Dennis (Phyllis) Hoffman; brother-in-law, Tom (Janet) Cappel; sister-in-law, Carol (Fred) Emmert; nieces, nephews and of course, many, many lifelong friends.

She was preceded in death by her parents; her husband of 52 years, Dick Cappel; her son, Bob; and daughter, Rebecca.

Visitation with family will be from 4:00 – 7:00 p.m., Wednesday, January 23, 2019, at Hockenberry Family Care in Atlantic, Iowa.

The funeral service will be at 11:00 a.m., Thursday, January 24, 2019, also at Hockenberry Family Care in Atlantic, Iowa.

Burial will be at 9:30 a.m., Thursday, January 24, 2019, at the Atlantic Cemetery, Atlantic, Iowa.