Nancy Susan Dake, 61, passed away at home with her family by her side.
Nancy was born January 9,1959 in Newberry Michigan to the late Howard and Pauline Brown was the youngest of 4 children and grew up as a childhood friend of her future husband Tom.
She and Tom married in 1978 and were seldom apart, even spending a year-and-a-half in England while Tom was in the Military. As an artist, Nancy became an art teacher after graduating with a bachelor’s degree in 1998.
Nancy was kind, caring, honest, lived and loved her life, she was loving and giving, she was a creator and adventurer, she was overflowing with ideas and creativity, she imagined more then she could ever create in a lifetime, including her miniature farm in her succulent garden to her published book of 365+ fairy drawings “Fay-A-Day”.
Nancy loved her family, she loved being a grandma to Lily, she loved being a good friend and she loved her animals, Nancy loved being a teacher, she loved the quietness and stillness of nature, she loved a good grilled cheese with a slice of tomato inside served with a bowl of tomato soup, She saw more colors than the rest of us and saw beauty in everything. She was really like a lot of us, she was just more – and that is exactly how she will be missed and more importantly remembered.
Nancy will be greatly missed by her husband Tom, her son Josh, her daughter-in-law Anne, her granddaughter Lily, other family, countless friends, and former students whom she left behind.
The family would like to invite you to Nancy’s Memorial Service this Sunday September 27, 2020 at her residence (5669 County Road ”V”, Town of Underhill, Gillett) from 4pm – 7pm for a chance to see everything she loved, share memories, and remember her as she would have loved.
Kuehl Funeral Home, Gillett is assisting the family.
“Art evokes the mystery without which the world would not exist.” – Rene Magritte
Thank you for all you have done for my boys-especially Matt and Mark. I know you were a great influence on them, and I will never forget that. My condolences to the family.
We will miss you, Nan! One of GILLETT’s finest Art teachers ever. ?
I first met Nan Dake when I came to Gillett to help the staff make “tie-dye spirit shirts”. I had been a chem teacher at 3 large suburban Milwaukee High schools. Each year, we did a tie-dye lab as an example of covalent bonding. At Gillett, I immediately loved both the smallness and unity I saw there. Nan was a huge part of the goodness and excellence on display there.
Nan invited me to Introduce her students to what I called “chem-art”. While in her classroom, I admired the wonderful manner in which she interacted with her students, the high respect her students had for her, and the infectious enthusiasm that radiated outward from her. I believe we did “chem-art” 3 or 4 years.
Nan made a difference for a great many students simply because she was what every teacher should be. On a larger note, Nan also was what every human should strive to be.