Obituary of Diane L. Reed

Diane Prezkop Reed, 71, formerly of Westport, CT and Michigan passed away after a brief illness on November 7, 2021.

Born on December 8, 1950, Diane was the beloved sister of Edward Prezkop of Hainesville, Wash.; Carole Prescott  of Madison; Raymond Prezkop of Westport; and the late Thomas Prezkop of Newburyport, Mass.  She was predeceased by her parents Michael and Lithia (Tadduni) Prezkop, longtime residents of Westport.  Diane is survived by her nieces Holley Ring of Seattle and Mayke Prezkop of Fairfield, Conn.; her nephews Michael Prescott of Seattle and Andrew Prezkop of Golden, Colo.; and numerous cherished cousins, great nieces and nephews, and their families.

Diane graduated from Staples High School in 1968 where she participated in intermural sports and wrote for the school newspaper and the yearbook.  She attended The University of Connecticut and received a Bachelor’s degree in English and a Master’s degree in Counseling and Higher Education.

In 1972, Diane married Steven Reed of Darien, Conn., also a UConn graduate, and the couple made Storrs, Conn. their new home.  Diane began her professional career at UConn as a research associate and then Assistant Director of Research and Data Acquisition for the Institute of Social Inquiry at Storrs.

The couple’s careers took them to Ohio, where Diane worked for Burke Marketing Services as an analyst, project director, and manager of research operations in Cincinnati, and operations manager for Information Research in Toledo. A final move took Diane and Steven to Lake Orion, Mich., where she worked for Visual Services, Inc. as marketing group director and director of teleservices. She especially loved being a mentor and coach to her staff and enjoyed the couple’s membership in the Indianwood Golf Club and the social and golf activities it involved.

After her divorce, Diane created a consulting practice, developing and editing training curricula and coaching management teams. In 2005, Diane returned to Westport to enjoy and support her family and pursue her writing.

Friends and family describe Diane as sweet, witty, compassionate, generous, and kind. She loved literature, science, spectator sports, music and humanity as a whole.  She was an avid collector and supporter of local artisans and craftsmen.  She passionately enjoyed her family, lifelong learning, and creative writing.  We will all miss the twinkle in her eye and her radiant smile.

A memorial service to celebrate Diane’s life and her brother Thomas Prezkop (who passed away on January 2022) will be held on June 29th, Wednesday at 11 AM in the Water’s Edge Resort, 1525 Boston Post Road, Westbrook, CT. Donations in her name may be made to the Westport Library, https://westportlibrary.org.

To order flowers online, for travel directions, or to sign her guest registry, please visit www.LeskoPolkeFuneralHome.com

Thomas M. Prezkop, age 73, of Newburyport, passed away at the Kaplan Family Hospice House in Danvers on January 6, 2022, after a hard-fought battle with pancreatic neuroendocrine cancer. His wife, Melanie Hession, was at his side.

Tom was raised in Westport, CT and grew up on Long Island Sound. It was there that he taught himself to sail, which started a lifelong love for all things aquatic. In early 1971, Tom’s best friend, Michael Vincent, invited him to work on the island of St. Maarten.  There he co-owned and restored the Black Swan, a 108’ ketch which he and his partner, Doug Hazelton, chartered out of Simson Bay. He also managed restaurants, started an omelet cafe with Michael, and captained other boats.

In 1978, Tom returned to the United States, and settled in Massachusetts where he married his first wife, Linn Anderson, and where their son Andrew was born. Tom’s second career was in mechanical design engineering. He was employed by Instrumentation Labs and other medical device companies before founding Andover Medical Development Group to do medical device component manufacturing in 1987. He operated AMDG for 35 years, fulfilling contracts with NASA, Boston Scientific, and others.

Tom was a passionate sailor and loved being outside on the water.  He was an expert angler, certified scuba diver, licensed pilot, and professional cook.  He was also a gifted athlete who enjoyed downhill skiing, surfing, water skiing barefoot, and golfing. His skills as a carpenter, engineer, and inventor meant he could build and fix anything, and all his friends and family knew it.  A lifelong learner, he always said “Teach what you know, learn what you don’t.  He was a generous, compassionate, loving husband, father, and friend. 

Tom was proudest of his son Andrew of Golden CO to whom he passed his endless patience, creativity and playfulness, and in whom he fostered lifelong passions as a musician, athlete, craftsman, outdoorsman, adventurer, and father.  He was overjoyed to be a grandfather to Avery and Luke, who both knew him as “Papa T”.

In 1995, Tom and his friend rescued a fellow boater who had fallen overboard in Gloucester Harbor and who had been seriously injured by its propeller. For this, Tom received a Public Service Commendation from the US Congress “for demonstrating courage and initiative in saving lives, qualities in keeping with the highest traditions of the Coast Guard.” 

In addition to his wife and son, he is survived by daughter-in-law Geneva Brion and grandchildren Avery and Luke of Golden, CO; his sister Carole Prescott of Madison CT; and brothers Edward Prezkop of Seattle, WA and Raymond Prezkop of Westport, CT.  He also leaves nieces Mayke Prezkop of Fairfield, CT; Holley Ring of Seattle, WA; Dr. Julianne Mann of Etna, NH; nephew Mike Prescott of Seattle, WA; and many beloved cousins with whom he stayed close throughout his life. He was pre-deceased by his parents Michael and Lithia Prezkop and his sister Diane Reed, all of Westport, CT.

A memorial service for Thomas and his sister, Diane (Prezkop) Reed (who passed away in November 2021) will be held on June 29th, Wednesday at 11 AM in the Water’s Edge Resort, 1525 Boston Post Road, Westbrook, CT. There will be an additional celebration of his life on August 8th in Newburyport, MA.. Details will be posted on Tom’s Caring Bridge Site at https://www.caringbridge.org/visit/tomprezkop. In lieu of flowers, please consider donations to The Ocean Foundation at https://oceanfdn.org/projects/ and the Kaplan Family Hospice House at https://www.caredimensions.org/giving/.