Nancy Askew

Nancy Askew was born in Omaha, Nebraska, on September 5, 1922, the second child of Margaret Fugitt Askew and Hubert Hobart Askew. Along with her older sister, Mary and her younger brother, Edward, Nancy grew up on the family’s farm in Thurman, Iowa. Graduating from Thurman High School in 1940, Nancy began college at Grinnell, Iowa at Grinnell College, studying art and design. In 1942, Nancy transferred to the University of Iowa. Studying in the same college where Grant Wood taught, Nancy received her Bachelor’s in Art in April, 1944. After graduation, Nancy moved to Los Angeles, California, where she worked in the commercial advertising industry. In 1946, Nancy returned to the Midwest and settled into the art community in Omaha, Nebraska, which ultimately became her permanent home. Accepting a position as a commercial artist at Omaha advertising and public relations firm, Bozell and Jacobs, Nancy created print media and advertising campaigns for their clients. Ultimately leaving Bozell and Jacobs, Nancy continued her art career as a freelance print designer until her retirement. With a keen sense of design and a love of art, Nancy and her sister Mary were both involved with the developing artistic culture in Omaha. Nancy became a docent at Joselyn Art Museum, and supported other cultural and philanthropic ventures in the city. Her Blackstone neighborhood was important to her, where she volunteered on projects and befriended new neighbors that moved in. Everyone in the neighborhood knew Nancy, not only for herself, but for the progression of her larger-than-life outdoor cats. Her latest, a Maine Coon cat named Snooks, roamed the neighborhood freely. Fiercely independent, Nancy lived her entire life on her own. Though never marrying, she was a wonderful aunt to her brother Edward and sister-in-law Marjorie’s five children, and supplemented their lives with books on art, design and family history. Until her death, she and her brother would chat on the telephone daily. Nancy passed away on Thursday, December 3rd at Clarkson Memorial Hospital, after suffering a debilitating accident. She leaves behind her brother Edward and sister-in-law Marjorie Askew, five nieces and nephews, 10 great nieces and nephews, one great great nephew, many friends and neighbors and her beloved cat, Snooks.

HEAFEY-HEAFEY-HOFFMANN DWORAK & CUTLER Mortuaries and Crematories 7805 West Center Road Omaha, Nebraska 68124 (402) 391-3900

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