Obituary of Nancy E. Hoadley

Nancy Elaine Hoadley was born on March 28, 1938 in Easton, Pennsylvania, to Howard and Edna (Iljana) Sherman. Her parents were bakers in a pretzel factory, and they made a happy home for Nancy and her older brother Howard. All three preceded her in death. She is survived by her loving husband, Howard, and her son, Nathan. Nancy graduated from Easton High School in 1956, and continued her education at the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing in Philadelphia. She graduated with a degree in nursing in 1958. Nancy worked as a nurse in the Easton area, and at Warren Hospital in Phillipsburg, N.J. until March, 1959, when she flew to Fairbanks, Alaska to marry Howard Hoadley who was stationed at Eielson Air Force Base. Nancy had met her husband in 1956, after her brother married Howard’s sister, Betty. They dated for two years before their marriage in Fairbanks on March 6, 1959. In 1960, they transferred to Minot Air Force Base in North Dakota, where Nancy worked at the local hospital. She gave birth to their only child, Nathan, on July 11, 1961. In 1963, Nancy and her son returned to Easton, PA, while Howard was sent to Libya for six months. They returned to Minot, before receiving orders to Wiesbaden, Germany in 1965. Nancy spent three glorious years traveling and camping, falling in love with the food, the wine and all things European. Seeing Rome and Berlin were but two of the many things she cherished during this joyous time of her life. In 1967, Nancy and Nathan returned to Easton, PA, while Howard was deployed to Vietnam. Upon his return in 1969, he was stationed at Langley Air Force Base in Virginia. The family lived in a great house a stone’s throw from the Chesapeake Bay, and enjoyed beach combing and crabbing, among other activities. In May, 1970, Howard was transferred to McChord Air Force Base, moving his family to Washington State. Nancy instantly fell madly in love with the Pacific Northwest, and decided this was where she was going to stay. They settled in Puyallup because of its small town atmosphere, and the fact that everything one needed was in close proximity. On the way to Washington, while driving on I-5 from a stop at Disneyland, Nancy saw a sign that read “CENTURION PLAYHOUSE” on the Fort Lewis base. The very next day, they made their way there, and a long and unforgettable journey was begun. From that moment on, theatre became the love of her life, second only to her family. Nancy loved acting, directing, and anything, and everything, in between. With the closure of the Playhouse, Nancy moved to the Chinook Theatre, to do dinner theatre on north Fort Lewis, and then to professional theatre at Tacoma Actors Guild. TAG started at St. Leo’s school, and then moved downtown to a new state-of-the-art building designed specifically for them. Nancy acted in many productions, and wore many administrative “hats”, including development, assistant management and company management, until her retirement in 1995 to pursue travels with her “hubby”. She and Howard took many trips to attend the yearly reunion of his navy buddies, and to visit dear friends all across the country. Washington was always her favorite state, but she also enjoyed Montana, Wyoming and Utah. Nancy was diagnosed with Crohns Disease in 2002, and had never fully recovered from her illness. She was diagnosed with cancer about six weeks before she passed away. She went to Franciscan House Hospice on Saturday, July 24th, and passed away Tuesday, the 27th at 4:30 p.m. Her family gives a special thanks to all those who treated Nancy, with respect and great compassion, in her last days. May she be in a better place where pain does not exist. Memorial donations may be made in Nancy’s name to: Valley Arts United www.valleyartsunited.org – click on Arts Downtown/Donate Now