Nancy Dunkle was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on January 5, 1945. She died in Lakewood, Colorado on September 18, 2021. Nancy Dunkle is survived by her brother, Bob, and her sister-in-law, Rosemary, and their three children: her three beloved nephews.
Nancy started life in a modest, three story row house in a very diverse neighborhood in Northeast Philadelphia. Looming large at the south end of her block were the imposing walls of Moyamensing prison, which fed early childhood fears of killers escaping. Countering her fears and feeding her imagination of how good will eventually triumph over evil in the world was a comic book store at the north end of the block that featured in the storefront window many editions of superhero and science fiction tales, which became favorite genres.
At the age of 7, Nancy’s life dramatically changed when her family moved to a countryside home with seven acres of land and the opportunity to grow their immediate family by bringing Tippy the dog and Bambi the goat to join Pinkle Purr the cat. That move was the biggest factor in forging Nancy’s interest in nature and it gave her father, a biology teacher at Girard College, the opportunity to share his love of the plants, flowers, trees, and insects on the property. Nancy was fascinated by those impromptu classroom lessons. She developed a close identification with her father and his ecological interests.
Nancy did extremely well in elementary, junior, and high school. She got nearly straight A’s in everything and became an accomplished musician and artist among her peers. After high school, Nancy and one of her best friends decided to go off to a Quaker College, Earlham College, in Indiana together. It was there that Nancy began to regularly attend Friends Meetings and eventually announced to her parents that she had joined the Religious Society of Friends.
Nancy’s conversion came in the midst of the Vietnam War and that made for some very interesting dinner table conversations when she came home on college breaks. Her father was politically conservative and Nancy’s strong advocacy for peace and rejection of the Vietnam War was a learning experience for the family. Conversations about war helped Nancy to develop the independent spirit and strength of character that went on to characterize her entire life. Nancy’s advocacy also helped convince her brother to join the Peace Corps rather than the Marines, a decision that changed the course of his life.
After graduating from Earlham, Nancy enrolled at Ohio University in a master’s program in ecology and environmental science. From there she went to work for the National Park Service where she worked as a botanist on the re-vegetation of national parks. She traveled all over the United States working on trails, campsites, and roadsides where humans had changed the vegetation. She did considerable work in the Olympic National Park and in Yosemite. Nancy moved to Denver in the late 1970s. In Denver she was involved in creating standards for re-vegetation in national parks and for planning such projects. Nancy had a firm belief that local input was important for success. She also created proposals for what needed to be done to make the vegetation more sustainable and return the vegetation to native species.
Nancy’s home life always involved animals and plants. She took courses to become a master gardener and always had pet cats, the most recent of whom were Molly and Mia. She also had a beloved dog named Twig. Later in her life Nancy was heavily involved in Overeaters Anonymous’ recovery programs - the people involved became a vital part of her social circle.
Nancy began attending Mountain View Friends Meeting in the 1970s and became a member on December 11, 1980. She was a devoted member of the Westside Worship Group of Mountain View from its beginning in the late 1980s. Her engagement with the Meeting over the decades was consistent, steadfast, and born of a strong sense of community and the importance of the Quaker testimonies of simplicity, peace, integrity, community, and equality. She missed nothing and held everything with a reserved attentiveness and centered presence, but not without thoughtful and firmly presented opinions. She was a lifelong spiritual seeker. Nancy served the meeting on many committees over the years. It was a gift to be on a committee or in any community activity with her.
We will remember Nancy for many gifts she gave to her family, friends, colleagues and her Quaker community, not least among them her quiet, humble demeanor coupled with the ability to stand her ground and speak and act on the courage of her beliefs.
On September 25, 2021, relatives, friends, Friends and colleagues gathered to celebrate a life well lived. Nancy was remembered for her kindness and forthrightness and for the “orneriness, humor, and generosity” she retained “right till the end.” Those who gathered that day admired, and were encouraged to select books to take from, her extensive library.