My Aunt, Diane Ellingson Smith

One year ago today, I was running a hackathon event at Twilio when I received a text message from my cousin saying that my Aunt Diane had died. I remembered all the lovely visits to her and my Uncle Scott's house—barbecues, sleepovers, lunch and woodworking—and enjoying her wit and friendliness at family get-togethers.

She was an accomplished gymnast years before I was born and despite dealing with a huge, life-changing injury because of the sport, she remained a lifelong gymnastics fan. I loved re-reading her book, Don't You Dare Give Up, utilizing old research skills from back when I worked at two libraries, and re-watching a video made about her to review all that she achieved and stood for during her life. You can read her bio here.

Here's a video that shows some of her gymnastics, her sharing lessons learned, and a glimpse into her time as a teacher:

I miss her and hope she's doing flips and cartwheels now.