Nancy Louise Hawkins

"I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day – and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing." 2 Timothy 4:7-8

"Therefore we are always confident and know that as long as we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord. For we live by faith, not by sight. We are confident, I say, and would prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord. So we make it our goal to please him, whether we are at home in the body or away from it." 2 Corinthians 5:6-9

With these promises in mind, Mom finished her race on March 4, 2024 and went home to be with Jesus.

Nancy Louise (Fennell) Hawkins was born on June 7, 1936 in Bethesda Hospital in St. Louis, Missouri to parents Robert and Dorothy Fennell. She was raised in Maplewood, Missouri with her older brother Bobby and younger sisters Diane and Sandra.

Mom met Dad in St. Louis in 1959. He was in the Army, and they were both working evenings at a Department Store named G.E.M. After a short 3 months of dating, they were married on September 12, 1959, and the rest is history.

Mom loved life, and particularly loved new experiences. She kept herself busy with so many things; sewing, cross stitch, crocheting, smocking, baking, genealogy, camping, hiking, photography, birds, fishing, writing poetry and reading anything she could get her hands on, just to name a few. From her genealogical research, she authored 4 books that documented the history of both her family and Dad's family. When family came to visit, she could whip up a pan of hot and fresh homemade biscuits in about 15 minutes, and she always had something recently baked that was ready to warm up.
Mom was also a hugger. A world class hugger. No one was exempt from a hug, not even total strangers. But she really meant each and every one of them, and those hugs will be missed.

One of her proudest achievements was her time spent working for the United States Coast Guard pay center in Topeka, KS. She was part of an amazing team of people there, many who remained good friends long after she retired.

She loved Colorado. She loved her grandchildren and great grandchildren. Now don't get me wrong, she liked her children well enough, but they couldn't hold a candle to her grands.

She was selfless and kind, and passed those traits on to her kids, grandkids, and great grandkids. We are forever grateful for the years that she was with us.

Her legacy is her family: her husband of 65 years, Van, her sons Mike, Steve (Nessa), Scott (Cindy), and John (Kim); grandchildren Andrea (Bruce), Sarah, Adam, Drew (Natalie), Zach, Tony (Carolyn), Alex (Shawna), Cian, Grace, Chanel (Matt), Fiona, Alexa, Ailish, Isaac, and Olivia; great-grandchildren Savanna (Matt), Tatum, Ava, Kayleigh, Evie, Avery, Jaxen, Tucker, Gavin, Willow, Khloe, Rylee, Brody and Rory.

A reception to celebrate her life will be held at her beloved home of 50 years in Silver Lake, KS on Saturday April 6, 2024. The family will be greeting those who wish to stop by between 1:00pm and 4:00pm. In lieu of flowers, please consider gifts to Midland Hospice in Topeka, KS.

To leave a message for Nancy's family, please visit the guestbook below.