Cover photo for Diane P. Kostick's Obituary
Diane P. Kostick Profile Photo
1942 Diane 2022

Diane P. Kostick

July 23, 1942 — April 7, 2022

Davenport, Barrington

Lifelong educator and author, Diane Kostick passed on to the next realm April 7, 2022, age 79, in the care of hospice. She was preceded in death by her beloved husband Andy Kostick with whom she was married to for 42 years.

Diane received her undergraduate degree in teaching from St. Xavier College and earned a master’s degree in Russian History from Northern Illinois University. In 1964, she came to Barrington to teach. Her reputation as a skilled teacher and mentor to countless students in the Barrington school district was legendary. Her passion was teaching and she was devoted to her students. She was well known for correcting grammar in the spoken word and on the page and her assignment of prerogatives was somewhat legendary. She taught for 50 years and was truly dedicated to her career. One of her greatest joys was seeing her students grow to adulthood and flourish in life.

In addition to teaching, Diane was deeply involved in the Barrington community. In the 1970s, she was instrumental in establishing the foreign student exchange program through Lines Elementary school known as LAFEP. Along with her fellow teachers and colleagues, the program was incredibly successful and meaningful for many students and families in the Barrington area. Diane and Andy were passionate about travel and foreign culture and hosted many, many teachers from around the world into their home through the foreign exchange programs they participated in.

Diane was an accomplished author and succeeded in the publication of 9 books during her career. She wrote educational manuals and was well known for chronicling the local history and influential and inspirational members of the Barrington community in The Chronicles of Barrington and Voices of Barrington. She was passionate about writing and was a key member of the Barrington Writers Workshop for many years. She also participated in Second Saturday Poetry sessions hosted monthly by the Northwest Cultural Council.

Diane and Andy had a wonderful tight-knit group of friends in the community, notably, their beloved “bikers group”. One of the most memorable stories from this close-knit group came from a trip to Wisconsin where they made a reservation at a restaurant for a group of 12 riders and when they arrived were greeted with a sign that read “Welcome Hells Angels”. Of course, the “bikers group” all showed up on ten-speed bicycles. Their friends in Barrington meant the world to them and they all lived life together to the fullest and enjoyed the company of each other with much vigor and joie de vivre!

Diane was passionate about her family and was a beloved sister, aunt, and cousin to her extended family and to Andy’s. She is survived by her daughter Jolie Stephan of Barrington and her son Yuri Kostick of Eagle, Colorado, and her three grandsons, Alden, Bode, and Xander.

There will be a celebration of life from 1pm-4pm, June 4th at her home in Barrington.  In lieu of flowers, her family requests that any donations be made to the Barrington Fire Department or to the Barrington Writers Workshop. She will be laid to rest in Evergreen Cemetery with her husband Andy as they will be together forever in the next realm as they were in life.

For additional information, please contact Davenport Family Funeral Home in Barrington 847-381-3411.

To order memorial trees or send flowers to the family in memory of Diane P. Kostick, please visit our flower store.

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