DIANE N. DODS
(1945-2018)

Diane Nosse Dods, age 72, passed away peacefully at home on April 30, 2018 surrounded by her loving family. Diane was born in Kahuku on August 7, 1945 to Lawrence and Juliette Chung Nosse and was raised in Waialua town on the Kawailoa plantation where her father served as the school’s Principal and her mother was a teacher. The family eventually made their home in East Oahu.
Diane was a graduate of Roosevelt High School and graduated with high honors from the University of Hawaii at Manoa, earning a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science. She was recognized with both the Phi Kappa Phi Honor Award and the Carl Knobloch Prize, given to the outstanding Political Science senior. Her undergraduate senior thesis entitled “Community Power Structure: A Case Study of Honolulu,” which examined the decision-making dynamics of leaders in the late 1960s, received the Social Science Prize awarded by the University of Hawaii for the outstanding research paper by a social science student. She went on to receive her master’s in Political Science from Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois.
Diane began her career as an Information Program Analyst in the Hawaii State Department of Planning and Economic Development (1968-1969) and served as the Press Secretary for both U.S. Senator Daniel Inouye (1969-1971) and then Lieutenant Governor George Ariyoshi (1971-1973). From 1981 to 1987 she worked at the East-West Center, first as their Director of Public Affairs, and then as the Corporate Secretary.
She had great fashion sense and a passion for the arts. She served as Commissioner of the State Foundation of Culture and the Arts and was a Trustee of the Honolulu Museum of Art. In 1996, she co-authored with Joan Namkoong the book “Artists/Hawaii”, celebrating 22 of Hawaii’s most respected contemporary artists.
Diane also served on the boards of the YWCA, Boys & Girls Club, and was a trustee for St. Andrew’s Priory and Hawaii Pacific University. Her philanthropic legacy continues through the numerous community organizations that she supported and through the Walter A. and Diane N. Dods Endowed Scholarship Fund, which she and her husband established at the University of Hawaii, for public school graduates of immigrant parents.
She married her husband Walter A. Dods, Jr., former First Hawaiian Bank chairman and CEO, in 1971. She was a devoted wife and mother, fiercely protective of her family, and, with her sharp political acumen, she was an invaluable partner, travelling extensively with her husband throughout his career. Diane was well respected for her high intellect and her generous caring and compassion for others.
Diane is survived by her sister, Joann Beccaria (Armando) of Honolulu; her husband of 47 years, Walter Dods, Jr., sons Walter Dods III, Chris (Starr), and Peter (Keiko), daughter Lauren and three grandchildren, Dylan, Sawyer and Finley.

In accordance with her wishes, a private family service was held at Diamond Head Mortuary. In lieu of flowers and gifts, please consider making a contribution to the Honolulu Museum of Art.