Memories of My Friend Diane Frink Drucker, Lady General and Brave Missionary

In 1967, Diane visited the Washington, DC center at 1907 S Street, NW with her spiritual father, David Flores. I remember the first time I saw her, just as she was walking in. I remember that she had an intelligent face and beautiful eyes. Her smile, though restrained at first, was genuine when one lured it out of her. She studied the Principle with an earnestness and a sincerity that showed her reverence for the words and her realization that this was now her way of life.

I encountered Diane again in 1972, when she became one of the 70. Missionaries traveling with True Parents in preparation for the first Day of Hope Seven Cities Tour. Although it was a bitter winter, the worst to date in New York City history, she went out with a will to find people that would purchase tickets for $18.00 to listen to True Father speak for three days at Alice Tully Hall, a part of Lincoln Center. No one had heard of Reverend Moon in those days, and spending eighteen dollars was the 2023 equivalent of spending almost $150. With the Vietnam War still raging overseas, no one was really interested in an Asian speaker, especially when people could not tell one Asian cultural group from another. For Christians, the third speech was on a Sunday evening, and Sunday was a holy day. For Jews, the second speech was on the first night, and the Sabbath was a holy day. For partygoers and travelers, the second day was right in the middle, and nobody wanted to attend a religious event. One had to sell tickets for all three days; there could be no sale of a single ticket. Who would pay that much for a ticket, and who would be the first to convince someone to do so? Day after day, the seventy pioneers went out, with no one managing to sell a single ticket.

And then - it was Diane that brought home the very first ticket sale. Rev. David Kim dubbed her the “Lady General,” because she had broken through and commanded the spirit world to touch the hearts of New Yorkers. After her victory, nearly everyone managed to make a sale. By the end of the campaign, the hall was full.

At the inaugural program at Alice Tully Hall and for the rest of that tour, Diane sang with the Remmel Chorus, under the baton of Randolph Remmel, director and arranger. She traveled on the original International One World Crusade tour, and again sang with the choir for the second tour, beginning at Carnegie Hall in New York.

In 1975, Diane was Blessed in marriage to Mr. Neal Drucker as a part of the 1800 Holy Blessing in 1975. Upon her return to America, she attended the Hundred Day training session for overseas missionaries and was selected to inspire the Sudanese nation with the Divine Principle. However, that country was soon overwhelmed with conflict, and she was forced to flee for her life. She then joined her husband in Israel, where he was serving as a missionary. The two of them established a business and found many converts. Eventually they returned to the US and began their work in Kodiak, AK with the fishing business.