His contributions to this organization won him a Humanitarian Award from the Country Radio Broadcasters in 1997. Diffie later became a country music radio broadcaster himself, fronting a midday program for Tulsa radio station KXBL. On March 27, 2020, Diffie announced that he tested positive for coronavirus in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. Two days later, on March 29, he died in Nashville at the age of 61 from complications of COVID-19.