HER HUSBAND AND FAMILY: After beginning her teaching career, Nancy and her husband of the next fifty-plus years, James “Jim" Packwood, were married. Jim remains in good health. Nancy is also survived by three children, Scott, Robert, and Sara, two grandchildren, and one cat. Five family dogs graced their lives; and Nancy had youthful memories of “Wacky” and “Quacky” (pet ducks raised, and then freed), as does Jim of another special “Kitty.”
HER PARENTS AND BROTHER: Nancy’s parents were Julian and Clara Wilmot of Seattle. Her brother is Edwin “Ed” Wilmot, six years younger. Their family home was near Green Lake in north Seattle. Ed’s career led him and his wife, Ann, to build or buy homes in a number of U.S. locations; and after retiring, Canadian officials persuaded him to advise the Canadian CEO at a nuclear site near Ottawa. They now live in New Mexico.
HER EDUCATION: Both Nancy and Ed were highly ranked honor students, and both graduated from Lincoln High School in Seattle and the U of W. Nancy graduated from Lincoln in 1961, and from the “U” in mid-1965. Ed’s wife, Ann, is also a U of W grad, as are Nancy’s husband and their daughter.
HER PROFESSIONAL CAREER: Upon graduating, Nancy began a forty and one-half year teaching career in the Seattle Public Schools. She taught in four elementary schools (North Queen Ann; Hawthorne; Broadview; and Green Lake) and Blaine Junior High, while Green Lake was being remodeled.
SPECIAL THANKS: We’d like to give a big shout-out to Ed and Ann for their support and visits; to Nancy’s end-stage, round-the-clock care givers (Nancy, Jane, and Ugo); to Phil, Renee, Viktor and all the hospice folks of Evergreen hospital; and to Larry and Barbara for being our friends for all these years, as well as for their deeply moving recent visit.
Thanks again. To borrow a phrase uttered by “Tiny Tim” in gratitude and expectation, “God bless us, everyone.”
continued...
HER INNER DISCIPLINE AND DEPENDABILITY - THE EARLY YEARS
HER PIANO AND TYPING SKILLS: Starting at an early age, Nancy took years of piano lessons. She was quite accomplished, both in music theory and performance. Perhaps not coincidently, her typing skills were also very high; during her undergraduate years in college, she worked in the summers typing dictated letters, etc., for an insurance company.
HER DISABILITY: When Nancy was fourteen or fifteen, she was struck in the right eye by a hardball. Subsequently, all vision was lost in that eye, and weekly migraines occurred for decades. She might have used her injury as an excuse to shirk growing into life’s more mature responsibilities. She didn’t. As far as she was concerned, it didn’t merit mentioning.
HER SCOUTING BACKGROUND: In high school Nancy became the woman’s equivalent of an Eagle Scout - an “Eaglet of Merit.” I learned this when she took out and wore her old uniform on a costume day years later at Green Lake. I was wowed. Not only did she look great in it, but I have never seen so many badges on one sash. She set a high bar for Ed, who attained the better-known rank of Eagle Scout about six years after Nancy.
HER CONSCIENTIOUSNESS: Nancy’s disciplined dependability began early, and showed up later in an unspoken contract with her students. Her assignments would be carefully prepared and always graded and back the next school day. When necessary, she would stay up past midnight to get it done. Her students soon realized that beneath her kindness and humor, she was serious about what she did and they were doing. She was “always prepared.”
NANCY’S BOND WITH HER BROTHER: Nancy’s affection for Ed was very real. It began when they were young, and was based more fundamentally upon who he is as a person than upon his remarkable academic and professional achievements. He feels the same way about her. Nancy and I, and each of our children, are appreciative of Ed’s and Ann’s empathetic acts of support over the years.
HER COLLEGE YEARS
HER ACADEMIC HIGHLIGHTS IN COLLEGE: Nancy was elected into Phi Lambda Theta, a national honorary for professional women in education. She received a Seattle Alumnae Club scholarship - one of four given that year to “upperclasswomen.” Her Phrateres scholarship (also earned years later by our daughter) was also valued, as were her long-time friends, Karen and Anna - and others I recall as being in this service and social organization.
HER RECOMMENDATIONS: Years ago Nancy spoke briefly of recommendations she had received from long-established and nationally-noted professors - including one notoriously hard grader (in “creative writing”) that included the hope that she might become his assistant following her graduation.
HER STUDENT TEACHING: As a senior, Nancy’s student teaching in the Edmonds District went extremely well, and she received teaching offers from nearly every district in the greater Seattle area. As an aside, although Nancy did not become a music teacher, music was a major part of her student teaching assignment - due, perhaps, to her years of piano lessons.
HER MAJOR: Her undergraduate emphasis was in literature and education, but her passion for the science of plants might have taken her along a different path. It would, however, have a definitive bearing on where we lived.
HER HOPE TO LIVE IN OR BY A PARK: Her hope came true. Our first family home was nestled in a one-acre “park” - a little Eden in Edmonds; our last home is located on two and one half park-like acres in Woodinville. In between, we lived on two and one half lots a few houses north of Green Lake Park - in many ways an ideal setting. In the first and last cases, Nancy had uttered the magic words when first visiting the property. “I love it,” she said. That was enough.
A PERSONAL ASIDE: In the last weeks of her life, Nancy’s voice was very soft and a bit hard to understand. She would, however, occasionally sing softly or hum along in proper pitch with music she liked. A day or two before she passed, she surprised us by breaking into spontaneous applause. She had just listened for the first time to a Whitney Houston rendition of the Star-Spangled Banner on YouTube. In short, Nancy still enjoyed and admired “excellence." This seems a perfect segue into her teaching career.
HER TEACHING CAREER
HER TENURE: During the SSD’s all-district retirement gathering, only two retirees were recognized as having spent forty or more years in the classroom. Nancy was one. Incidentally, at Green Lake only two others knew Nancy was thinking of retiring: Cheryl, her last principal; and Cheryl’s trusted head secretary, Joyce. Cheryl urged Nancy to reconsider. The point here is Nancy was still seen as being at the top of her game.
A ONE-WORD SUMMATION OF HER AS A TEACHER: Nancy and I met her last principal, Cheryl, several years after Nancy’s retirement. After warm greetings were exchanged, Cheryl’s first comment was an instant summation of Nancy’s career. “When I think of you,” she said, “I think of excellence in education.”
HER AREAS OF UNCOMMON COMPETENCE: At the conclusion of graduation ceremonies for Green Lake’s two fifth-grade classes, Cheryl shocked those present by announcing Nancy’s decision to retire. I recall a minute or so of student dismay and parent ado. Cheryl then spoke from the heart. She started by stating that Nancy had truly “made a difference, perhaps more than you know…”. She continued in cadence. “She taught your students reading; she taught your students writing; she taught your students math; she taught your students science.” She went on. Her implication throughout was clear. She was speaking of uncommonly effective teaching - of excellence in improving student abilities in each of these core areas. It was a fine speech, followed by several minutes of standing ovation.
HER CORE MISSION AS A TEACHER: Nancy wanted each student to enter MS standing on a solid foundation in each of the four core subjects. Her core mission was to “empower” their progress.
ANOTHER MEMORY OF THAT DAY: During the ceremony, Sara R., one of Nancy’s students, read a piece she had written about Nancy’s teaching that was so spot-on, so authentic, and so well-delivered that I’d retype it here if I had a copy. Among other things, Sara stressed that Nancy was “helpful and kind,” that she truly “listened” and that she was “funny.” I’m reminded of how often I’ve heard or read similar student comments about Nancy -- and of how important each of these attributes is to a student.
HER EMPATHY: Nancy was intuitively empathetic. Attuned to developing situations, she would spontaneously move to assist. If a student was having a learning difficulty, she would offer both encouragement and academic help. If the need persisted, she persevered.
HER EMOTIONAL ALERTNESS: Nancy was emotionally alert and kind. For example, she was quick to include those who seemed a little left out. Upbeat and positive, she offered cheerful comments and compliments to those who seemed down. Her humor was always gentle and useful in such cases, as well as in keeping attention focused.
HER LISTENING AND COPING SKILLS: By some early point, Nancy had learned to calmly cope with circumstances - and to model coping skills for others. As a teacher, for example, when one or more students upset another, Nancy would step in, offering a calming and correcting influence. She started by expressing awareness of a seeming difficulty. She tried to find out from each person what was going on, and how each one really felt about it. She listened in an unassuming manner. She then tried to clarify the situation for herself and others. She sought both to learn to help. To me, “her calm and unassuming skill in listening,” and her resultant “skill in mediating student disputes” were key abilities.
TEACHING HIGHLIGHTS ALONG THE WAY
A HAWTHORNE HIGHLIGHT: After teaching various grades at Hawthorne, Nancy was asked to set-up and teach a multi-grade “reading-lab,” an innovation being introduced into a number of Seattle’s public elementary schools. As the year progressed, the “labs” were visited by central office folks and others on a regular basis. Their end-of-year evaluation of Nancy’s lab was remarkably concise - “an exemplary reading lab.” No other comments or suggestions were offered. Student progress was apparent. In short, Nancy seemed to know what to do, and how to go about doing it in varied, but individually appropriate, ways. By the way, the original Hawthorne building was soon condemned for seismic reasons.
A BROADVIEW HIGHLIGHT: Her principal at Broadview, Amy, may have been the first woman to hold the position in the SSD. In any event, Amy recommended that Nancy take the steps necessary to become a principal, and offered to mentor her. Nancy was appreciative, but decided the course-work and added responsibilities would take too much time away from her family. It was a road not taken.
HER GREENLAKE EXPERIENCE WITH MICROSOFT: While at Green Lake, Nancy generated a computer project about American History that caught the attention of Microsoft. She was contacted repeatedly for a while about working with or for them. This was also a road not taken.
A HIGHLIGHT AT BLAINE JUNIOR HIGH: Nancy was uncommonly effective in helping students catch up. A mother of a student at Blaine Junior High wrote an unsolicited letter to the downtown “central office.” She commended Nancy’s “effectiveness,” and her “extra efforts in a difficult case.” “If the Seattle School District has a hall of fame,” she concluded, “Mrs. Packwood should be in the middle of the first row.”
A GREEN LAKE HIGHLIGHT: The SD “central office” asked Nancy to write a manual for the district laying out the steps involved in teaching
cursive writing. It wasn’t her “area,” but she did so with her usual attention to detail and teaching acumen. It was a work of art, and may still be in use in the SSD.
ANOTHER GREEN LAKE HIGHLIGHT: Sandy, a kindergarten teacher long admired by Nancy, suggested that Nancy’s fifth graders each become a mentoring buddy to one of Sandy’s kindergarteners. Special get-togethers in class were arranged. Each fifth-grader’s central purpose was to get to know, assist, and cheer-on their younger buddies. Cooperation with other pairs on common projects was encouraged. Each age-group saw growth in maturity and responsibility. It was an enjoyable experience.
SOME FOLKS AT GREENLAKE: Over the years, Nancy enjoyed and admired many colleagues. Some brought to mind recently include Sandy and Cilla, Phyllis and Vicki, Joyce and Cheryl, and Abrahaw and Mr. Singh - whose retirement gathering we both wanted to attend had we learned of it.
HER MOTTO: If Nancy had a motto, it might well have been this - that “each day can bring an opportunity to make a positive difference for someone.”
CELEBRATING NANCY’S LIFE: What we celebrate the most in Nancy’s life is her genuine responsiveness to others’ needs for loving support. Nancy's childhood family, faith, and early teachers built her foundation. Her husband, her family and in-laws, and more than a generation of students were the blessed beneficiaries. She loved and
was loved. God bless you, Nancy.
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