The 10 Minute Conversation: Diana and Lyle Smith

Diana and Lyle Smith moved to Vancouver in 2003 from Naperville, Illinois. The son of missionaries, Lyle grew up in the Congo, from birth to age 14. Diana grew up in a farm community within 50 miles of Chicago. Lyle is retired from Lucent Technology. Diana owns Padgett Business Systems  in downtown Vancouver.

Lyle and Diana have raised funds for AIDS for years and established a foundation, For Global Progress, which has raised thousands of dollars for the development of AIDS vaccines. For 15 years, they have organized Lyles Myles. This year’s Lyles Myles Walk/Run and Urban Adventure Course  will be held on Saturday, October 10 in Vancouver.

ZEST: What brought you to SW Washington?

Diana: My daughter. I wanted to live closer to my children.
Lyle: I came because of golf although I didn’t know it at the time.

ZEST: What do you love about SW Washington?

Diana: I love everything about SW Washington. The climate, the people, all the activities there are to do. I love it that my husband can golf all the time.
Lyle: Golf all year.

ZEST: What is the best-kept secret about SW Washington?

Diana: I think it is the summer weather – warm days and cool nights.  Almost every time I make a remark about the beautiful summer weather someone else will say “Don’t tell anyone!!”
Lyle: You can golf year-round.

ZEST: What is your favorite place to relax or play in SW Washington?

Diana: If had a day off, I would go to the beach. I love, love, love the beach. My backyard is not so bad either. It’s pretty nice to relax in.
Lyle: So what she said and, would you believe, a golf course.

ZEST: If you didn’t live here, where would you live?

Diana: I cannot imagine living any other place in the world. I grew up my whole life within a 50 mile radius of the spot I was born and I thought when I moved out here that there would be some homesickness but not a nanosecond. I miss my friends from Chicago because they are really wonderful and lovely but…
Lyle: Wherever Diana is. We flew back to Chicago after a month of moving here and when we flew back into PDX I asked Diana if it felt like we were coming home and she said “yes.” I met a guy who had lived all over the world. He was from Denmark I think. He said this is the best place in the world to live in this area – you have the gorge, the mountains, the ocean, the climate. It IS the best place in the world to live.

ZEST: What’s coming up that you are excited about?

Diana: Lyles Myles Run/Walk and Urban Adventure Course ! It is a fundraiser for AIDS on Saturday, October 10.

Lyle: We have been doing it for 16 years. This year has an exciting addition – the urban adventure course– like a treasure hunt with physical activities and clues to figure out. We have a lot of teams signed up for that. And the traditional 7.5 K (Lyle is 75 this year) and getting longer every year walk or run, which I win every year. My trophy is already engraved. 

It started when I was 60. I used to run a lot. But I was always slow so I was always in the back of the pack. So when I turned 60 I thought what can I give myself for my birthday and I thought – win a running race! So I invented a race that I could win with a rule that if you cross the finish line before me, you are disqualified. So I have been able to win this race for the last 15 years and I intend to win it this year. When we started the race, we asked for a donation for Global Partners, which works with AIDS in Africa so we collected some donations. It became a tradition to ask for a contribution. A couple of years ago, we raised over $6000. We have been dividing it between Global Partners and Martha’s Pantry, which works with AIDS affected people in Clark County. We have raised $20,000-$30,000 over the years. 

ZEST: What would surprise people to know about you?

Diana: After high school, I worked for the FBI for a short time, analyzing fingerprints.
Lyle: I know how to make a mud hut with a thatched roof, which I learned in Africa.