Dana Lynn Duren's Life
Dana’s Story
Very early in Dana’s life, her mother, Sharon, married William Bawcombe. Sharon, Bill (William), and Dana moved to Northern Virginia, where Sharon and Bill would have three more children. All of whom Dana adored until the day of her passing.​
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Dana graduated Mount Vernon High School and enlisted in the US Army in 1978. She attended the Fort McClellan boot camp in Alabama, where she was enrolled in technical training as an Electronic Intelligence (ELINT) Operator at Fort Devens, Massachusetts. Upon completion of her technical training, Dana was assigned to Camp Humphries in South Korea, where among other technical duties, she flew in the right seat of a Mohawk fixed wing airplane. From which, she conducted ELINT collection operations on the DMZ, which separates North Korea from South Korea.
OV-1 Mohawk Observation Aircraft
After finishing her assignment in Korea, Dana was transferred to Fort Meade, Maryland where she supported the National Security Agency (NSA). She returned to Korea on a temporary duty assignment (TDY) for almost a year, performing technical signal collection activities in support of national security objectives, after which she returned to NSA.
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Upon her return, Dana met her husband, Charles (Charlie) A. Duren, Jr., who was an U.S. Air Force member. Charlie would describe Dana as, "The most beautiful woman he had ever seen" and was interested in learning more about her. Charlie asked two fellow Air Force members if Dana was single, but the Airmen informed him that she was not interested in dating any military men.
Six months later, in 1983, they found themselves stationed together in Berlin on a TDY. There, the relationship between them would grow and they would go from acquaintances to friends and, eventually, they would fall in love. Dana let it be known that Charlie's persistence was what ultimately won her over. And By February 24, 1984, Dana and Charlie were married in Lakeridge, Virginia between assignments.
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Dana separated from the US Army in early 1985, following Charlie's transfer orders to Pensacola, Florida for advanced training. After his training was complete, Dana and Charlie were transferred to San Vito Air Station, Italy where they resided for 3 years.
​Although money was tight while living in Italy, Dana and Charlie were able to travel together and visited several places. In early 1987, they took a trip to Garmisch, Germany where they stayed at an Armed Forces ski resort. They ate good food, went skiing, and shared an amazing experience. Dana had a great sense of humor about learning to ski and would say she had the moves "Big Bird". The vacation to Garmisch also included a chance to visit the famous Hofbräuhaus in Munich, where Dana and Charlie spent the day living in the typical German style!
Hofbräuhaus, Munich Germany, 1987
While Dana was in Italy, she worked at the Air Station’s Class VI store selling beer, wine, and liquor. Dana and Charlie were excited about her new position at the Air Station as there were few jobs for dependents and other choices were limited. They would joke about how Charlie always wanted to marry a girl whose dad owned a liquor store and that the Air Station’s Class VI store was close enough.
The Class VI’s manager, Pierro, would become friends and fill them in on the “Curse of the Class VI Store”. Pierro was afraid that there might be something in the water, because most of the women who worked in the store would eventually become pregnant and resign.
The “Curse of the Class VI Store” was proven to be true. Dana found out she was pregnant with her first child and resigned. Danielle Lisa (Duren) Tiller was born on December 22, 1987 in Wiesbaden, Germany and both Dana and Charlie were ecstatic to welcome their first child into the world! ​​​
One year later, Dana and Charlie left Italy returning to NSA at Fort Meade, Maryland. At the time of their transfer, Dana was pregnant with their second child, Devin Duren, who was born on June 16, 1989, at Andrews Air Force Base in Maryland.
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Dana and Charlie were stationed at Fort Meade from December 1988 to August of 1991. During this time, Dana had the unenviable task of keeping the family together while Charlie went to college in the evenings and worked during the day, often having to travel. This was not an easy time for Dana as money was tight and she was doing the heaving lifting for the family. In spite of this, Dana met this challenge superbly, while also bringing one more child into the world, Charles (Chad) A. Duren, III. Born on April 15, 1991, at Johns Hopkins in Baltimore, Maryland.
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Because of Dana’s dedication to her family, and through sacrifice of her own personal wishes, Charlie was able to graduate from college in May of 1991. This led to a turning point in their life, where a decision was made for Charlie to leave active duty and pursue a career in the private sector. Charlie was apprehensive about taking such a risk, but Dana was adamant in her belief in him and in the family. This move would have never happened without Dana’s support and love for Charlie and her children. Dana was right, as usual, because the family’s quality of life greatly improved.
Dana, Charlie, and the kids, moved from Fort Meade, Maryland to Montclair, Virginia in 1991, where they moved into their first home. The kids grew up in this home, and this is where Dana continued to be a supportive mother and wife for the next 20 years. Once the kids became teenagers, Dana went back to work with her sister, Bethany Schiebler, performing technical recruiting for the information technology industry. Dana derived immense joy from working with and for her sister.
In 2013, Dana and Charlie’s oldest child, Danielle, married Jon Tiller, of Nokesville, Virginia. Dana was so proud of Danielle and Jon.
Dana planned the wedding perfectly! On September 22, 2017, Danielle and Jon gave birth to Dana’s only Grandchild, Grace L. Tiller. Grace was the apple of Grandma’s eye!
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In January of 2018, Dana was finally able to move into her dream home; the type of home built for family gatherings, celebrations, or simply hanging out. Her home is in Spotsylvania, Virginia in the Civil War battlefields near Fredericksburg, Virginia. She loved her home, her neighbors, and the surrounding area.
During this time, Dana and Charlie were able to travel extensively. They visited the Caribbean many times, only missing a few of the islands, and to places like Las Vegas and Florida. Dana and the family spent years going to the Outer Banks in North Carolina, and Dana was adamant, only wanting a house on the ocean that has a pool and takes pets.
Additionally, Dana loved taking cruises and watching the Washington Capitals play hockey. Over the years, she also developed a fondness for playing a little Blackjack.
Danielle, Jon, and Grace Tiller
Unfortunately, this time in Dana’s life was too short. However, she loved every moment of her time there; her home was her happy place and traveling was her passion. While some trips that were planned were not made, the ones she took made her extremely happy and she was always looking forward to the next adventure with her husband, Charlie.
Dana was many things to many of us. She was a loving wife, soulmate, mom, sister, daughter, friend, and child of Christ. Please feel free to share any memories of Dana you may have and be sure to include any pictures. This is a perpetual obituary and memorial dedicated to Dana, her life, and her impact on the lives of many.
