Diana grew up in Tampico, Mexico, the youngest of four daughters. She left the family home in 1994 to study at the University of Guadalajara where she took four years of Biology followed by another four years to obtain her Music degree.
Diana auditioned and won a chance to pay for another year at the Royal Toronto Conservatory of Music. Consequently, she and her husband moved to Toronto for the year.
Her husband was keen to emigrate permanently to Canada , but she preferred to return to Mexico . (She wasn’t keen on Toronto’s winter weather!) Nevertheless , her husband had made application for them to immigrate. It was when she was away on an opera tour that he notified her that their applications had been approved! To complete the process, they then had to go back to Mexico and return over land via Buffalo to the Canadian border crossing. There was a 6 month grace period for them to confirm their desire to remain in Canada as landed immigrants.
Diana’s husband wished to remain in Toronto, but in 2009 Diana chose to leave him and set out Vancouver with only two suitcases. Initially she stayed at the ‘Y’ in Vancouver, but since it was suggested she would like North Vancouver as a place to live, she found accommodations and a job at Home Hardware in North Vancouver.
Diana admits to being a handy person who likes to repair things. It obviously has suited her well as she has been at Home Hardware for 13 years, working her way up to the Manager position. Diana has been seeking a change though and will start as a Home Support Worker with VCH in a few weeks.
How did Diana end up as our church’s lead soprano? When first settling in Vancouver, Diana sought out a music connection and first took voice lessons. From there she was referred to audition with the Vancouver Jewish choir where she sang for 11 years. She spent a year, as well, with the Vivaldi choir and then joined the St Andrew’s choir under Daryl Nixon (husband of our Music Director). From there, of course, she met Alison and joined NSUC’s Vox Lumina choir.
Sadly, in the midst of the Covid pandemic in 2022, Diana’s mother died, leaving her father alone in Tampico. With that tragedy — and having a full time job plus many singing engagements — Diana felt the pressure was too great, so she stepped down from many of her previous activities. Fortunately though, she swears that she is ours to keep, as she has found not only great friendship here but finds our beliefs align with hers.