Heather Dietz Braun, of Fishers, Indiana, passed away in the arms of her
children, parents, sisters and aunt Lori at St. Vincents Ascension
Hospital in Indianapolis, Indiana, on November 28, 2021.
Heather was born on April 15, 1971, in the Fort Leonard Wood Army
Hospital at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri. She attended elementary school
and high school in Osborne, Kansas, where she excelled academically and
participated in all sports, excelling in tennis and basketball. In
addition to her sports participation, Heather also excelled in vocal and
instrumental music. Upon graduation from Osborne High School, Heather
went on to Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island, as a recruited
athlete to play on the Brown University women’s basketball team from
1989 – 1993. Following her graduation from Brown University with a B.A.
Degree in Economics, she entered the sports management Masters program
at Ohio State University and received her Masters Degree in sports
management in 1995. In addition to her graduate studies at Ohio State,
Heather entered the Miss Solomon Valley pageant in Kansas and was
crowned Miss Solomon Valley and went on to be a participant in the Miss
Kansas pageant in 1994.
Heather’s first job following graduation from Ohio State was with
the Big 8 Conference which had its office in Kansas City, Missouri at
that time. While a student in graduate school at Ohio State, she met
her future husband, Lee Braun, who was also a student at Ohio State.
She and Lee were united in marriage at the Old Mission United Methodist
Church in Overland Park, Kansas, on August 3, 1996. Following their
marriage, she and Lee relocated to Indianapolis, Indiana, where Heather
changed from a career in sports management to a career in sales and
marketing. Heather and Lee were blessed with two children, daughter
Haydn and son Jack. Haydn is a recent graduate of North Central College
in Chicago now living in Indianapolis and working in marketing for a
firm located in Indianapolis and Jack is a freshman at the University of
Indiana.
Heather was a member of the Northview Church in Carmel, Indiana.
She was a devout Christian and was a deeply caring person who always had
a concern for others. While her life since leaving for college was
spent far away from Osborne, Heather always said to friends and family
that “I am a Kansas girl”. She was an avid fan of Ohio State Buckeye
football and Kansas University Jayhawk basketball. The high points of
her life were watching her daughter, Haydn, play college basketball at
North Central College in Chicago and son, Jack, play high school
baseball for Fishers High School, culminating in the 2021 Indiana Class
6A State Championship game this past June.
Heather enjoyed sports, having been an active sports participant
when of a younger age, and then in recent years fervently following
college and professional sports teams as well as her children’s sports
teams. Heather’s most enjoyment in life, however, was communicating
with her family members, both immediate and extended, and her former
college basketball teammates, many friends and former coaches and
teachers. In essence, Heather was a “people person”. She preferred to
communicate by phone rather than text. She loved keeping up with the
Osborne and Smith Center communities where she has so many friends,
former classmates and extended family members. It was quite common for
her to call back to mom and dad concerning events, activities and people
in the Osborne community that mom and dad did not yet know about or had
not yet heard. Heather always had a keen interest in national and
international events. She loved to call mom and dad almost every day
and talk about local news in Osborne and across the country. And just
like her grandmother Dietz, she liked to talk about what was going on
politically in Washington, D.C.
Heather and Lee divorced, but they continued to co-parent Haydn and
Jack as well as have and show the greatest respect for each other.
Heather had a love of life and people like no other. Her loved ones
cannot believe she is no longer with them. She was so much a part of
the everyday life of her family members and friends. The memories of
Heather’s contribution to their lives will ease the pain of her loss.
Heather was preceded in death by her maternal grandfather, Dale E.
Merritt, and her paternal grandparents, Howard Dietz and Ruth Dietz.
Emily Brenner, a very close friend of Heather’s during her life in
Indiana preceded her in death in 2015, which deeply affected her.
Heather leaves and will be deeply missed by her daughter, Haydn,
Fishers, Indiana; son Jack, Bloomington, Indiana; parents Richard and
Marsha Dietz, Osborne; sister Sommer (Vance) VanPelt and children,
Keegan, Kinley and Kale, Lawrence, Kansas; sister Brittany (Joe)
Carvalhido and children, Dane and Ian, Baton Rouge, Louisiana; maternal
grandmother, Doris Merritt, Lebanon, Kansas; uncle, Robert (Wanda)
Dietz, Smith Center, Kansas; aunt, Claudia (Gary) Pfannenstiel,
Littleton, Colorado; aunt, Sondra (Kent) Kennedy, Lebanon, Kansas;
uncle, Randall (Shirley) Merritt, Lebanon, Kansas; uncle, Gary (Cindy)
Merritt, Topeka, Kansas; and aunt, Lori (Rob) Elder, Olathe, Kansas; as
well as many nieces, nephews, other relatives and a multitude of
friends.
Heather’s family would like to express their deep heartfelt
appreciation to the Osborne community and all of those from near and far
whose lives Heather connected with and who have contacted her family to
express their sympathy and condolences.
Click HERE for service details.