Diane Lynn (McMullin) McCarty, 78, of Perry passed away peacefully on Thursday, Sept. 18, 2025, at Aspire of Perry.
A Celebration of Life will be held Tuesday, Sept. 23 at 12 p.m. at the Caldwell Parrish Funeral Home-Perry Chapel, with visitation beginning at 10 a.m. Burial will follow at Violet Hill Cemetery in Perry, Iowa.
Diane was born Aug. 25, 1947, to Garold and Alice Jane (Stickel) McMullin in Perry, Iowa.
Diane dedicated 44 years to the nursing profession, more than 40 of those as a Registered Nurse at Mercy Hospital in Des Moines. She was proud of her work caring for patients, particularly in neurology and later endoscopy. Throughout her career, Diane formed lifelong friendships and was admired for both her leadership and her joyful, spirited personality.
The greatest joy in Diane’s life was her daughter, Alison, with whom she shared a special, inseparable bond. They loved camping adventures, trips to casinos and simply being together.
In her later years, Alison not only remained Diane’s closest companion but also became her devoted caregiver. Diane and Alison enjoyed watching the Indiana Fever games, especially Caitlin Clark.
Camping was a personal delight, through many campers and vehicles she would hitch up the camper and set off to meet her camping friends for a week of camping, cookouts and hijinks. It was through camping that she met her “sister of the soul,” Susan Emmett (now deceased), with whom she shared countless adventures and laughter-filled escapades.
Diane was preceded in death by her parents; her brother, Danny (Donna) McMullin; her sister, Denise (Tom) Ingebritsen; and her nephew, Scott McMullin.
She is survived by her husband, Joe McCarty; her cherished daughter, Alison Matheny, and her husband, Brian Matheny; nephews, Brad McMullin, Todd McMullin and Isaac Ingebritsen; great-niece and great-nephew, Maddie McMullin and Thomas McMullin; and brothers-in-law, George McCarty and the Rev. Lawrence McCarty.
Memorial contributions may be directed to the family and will be designated toward a scholarship in Diane’s name for the Mercy School of Nursing. Condolences may be shared online at www.caldwellparrish.com.
