Article written by Gary Schnurrpusch
Gary and Diane met in downstate Normal, IL, when she was trying out for the Illinois State University marching band as a freshman clarinet player. Sophomore Gary was a drum major. While both majored in other fields (math for Gary; home economics for Diane), music played a huge part in their college experience. Both continued to march in the band each fall while Gary also played alto saxophone in the ISU jazz band. Despite widely different backgrounds, Gary from the northern Chicago suburbs and Diane from a farm in central Illinois, they saw a future together. Gary and Diane both planned to be high school teachers after college.
With the Vietnam war raging, however, Gary signed up for Navy delayed entry officer programs in his junior year. Upon his graduation in 1969, Gary left for training at Officer Candidate School in Newport, RI. The couple was married at Great Lakes Naval Training Center one week after he was commissioned as a fleet Ensign, sword arch and all. No honeymoon, Gary left two days later for his first ship while Diane stayed at ISU to complete her senior year. Fortunately, she had enough credits to graduate in January 1970 and soon joined Gary in Charleston, SC. Diane worked for a short time in the dietary department, teaching nutrition at the Medical University of SC hospital, then taught in the public schools, just as she did in later years.
While Gary’s dad was a 20-year career Navy Chief Petty Officer, Gary intended only to serve his three-year Navy service obligation and return to teach in Illinois. But Gary and Diane enjoyed the Navy life and significant responsibilities so much during their first ship assignment, they decided to make the Navy a career.
Gary served on seven frontline ships, commanding three: USS O’CALLAHAN, an anti-submarine warfare frigate; USS GARY, a guided missile frigate; and USS BUNKER HILL, a state-of-the art Aegis guided missile cruiser. While deployed on GARY in the Persian Gulf, he served in Operation EARNEST WILL, ramping up to Operations DESERT SHIELD and DESERT STORM. His service on BUNKER HILL included his third career deployment to the Persian Gulf plus a critical operation in the Strait of Taiwan against Chinese ballistic missiles, that were launched against Taiwan during the fourth China-Taiwan Crisis of 1996. Navy officials said that BUNKER HILL’s operational success in this operation revitalized the Navy’s emerging ballistic missile defense (BMD) program for surface warfare ships, which is now a huge priority capability in today’s global fleet.
Gary also obtained a MS in Operations Research/Systems Analysis at the Naval Postgraduate School (Monterey, CA) and served three tours in the Pentagon on the program analysis staffs of the Secretary of Defense and Chief of Naval Operations. Gary retired as a Captain, Surface Warfare.
Over 28 fleet years, Gary and Diane raised two sons, Ryan and Mark, both married with children; moved 14 times; and enjoyed living on both U.S. coasts and Yokosuka, Japan. Upon his retirement from the Navy in 1997, they returned to Northern Virginia, occupying the home they purchased in nearby Burke Centre in 1980.
With both sons on their own, Diane pursued a second career and obtained her MS in Library and Information Sciences from Catholic University of America in DC. While she worked as a government reference librarian, she was also active in several professional organizations, including as president of the DC Special Libraries Association. Diane retired in 2013 from the Defense Technical Information Center, Fort Belvoir.
After her government retirement, Diane joined Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) where she continues to be active in historic preservation, such as helping to transcribe and type Fairfax County’s old, hand-written, school board and Board of Supervisors’ minutes, now available in the Fairfax County and DAR libraries. One highlight of Diane’s retirement years has been three genealogy trips to Germany with a tour company that specializes in helping Americans find the hometowns of their German ancestors. In 2019 Gary joined Diane on one of these trips as their 50th wedding anniversary celebration. Diane stays involved in a variety of genealogy societies and has given presentations on research techniques. She is an active gym member and belongs to several book clubs.
After his Navy retirement, Gary continued to work as a senior maritime warfare analyst in three Washington DC companies, retiring from “beltway service” after 22 more years. Being an avid music fan, who also had written and scored music for jazz bands in his college years, Gary follows jazz, classic rock, folk, and country music.
Gary and Diane are active attendees at the George Mason University (GMU) Center for the Arts. Gary served on the Board of the Friends of the Center for the Arts for several years. He remains active in Navy functions through on-line Navy discussion groups and enjoys reading military history and historical novels. For two years, Gary served as a Trustee of Burke Centre, a Virginia-designated planned residential community. Gary, a lifelong and die-hard Chicago Cubs fan, coached and umpired for Fairfax baseball leagues. He follows the Chicago Bears, Blackhawks, and Bulls, too.
When Gary and Diane learned about the Woodlands, it seemed like coming home. They found exactly what they wanted … friendships and a pleasant life of in-house classes, concerts, trips, and social culture. Gary continues his routine of a daily 3-mile speedwalk through the surrounding neighborhood and pond or on the Woodlands treadmill. Diane supplements her outside gym classes with the Woodlands’ water aerobics class and in-house exercise. They are very happy with their new apartment, which gives Gary his own office/library and Diane a guest room that doubles as her genealogy, computer, and scrapbooking space. Their piano was a must and their apartment accommodates it. Their children and grandchildren, who live in the west, agreed The Woodlands fits them perfectly.
It’s great to be here with our new friends and colleagues!
