Nancy Joanne Carter

Nancy Joanne Carter, 88, passed away February 2, 2020 at AdventHealth Shawnee Mission hospital in Merriam, KS. A Celebration of Life will be held on Saturday, April 25, 2020 at 11:30 a.m. at Shelter House #3 at Lake Shawnee in Topeka. Lunch will be served.

Nancy was born September 10, 1931, in Saint Joseph, MO, to John McKinley Shively and Joanne Klee Shively. Nancy grew up in Warrensburg, MO and attended Warrensburg High School. She attended Central Missouri State University in Warrensburg where she was a member of Tri Sigma sorority. After college, Nancy moved to Denver, CO with her sister Marilyn and two friends to live and work near the mountains. She was an executive secretary with Marion Oil Company and Shell Oil Company.

Nancy married James H. Carter whom she had met at CMSU. They married on December 5th, 1957 in Denver. They soon moved to Sedalia, MO, lived briefly in Marshall, MO and then settled in Topeka in 1965. After raising her children, Nancy returned to the work force in June 1985, serving as an Office Assistant with the State of Kansas Department of Agriculture until her retirement in July 2007.

Nancy was an avid gardener and nature lover. She loved digging in the dirt and tending to the flowers in her gardens. In her later years, she fed the many birds and squirrels that gathered in her redbud tree and yard and loved to watch them while enjoying a cup of coffee and reading the newspaper at her kitchen table. She was an avid reader and kept up on news, sports and politics. Nancy loved to attend estate sales and garage sales and held many of her own in her spare time. She was a wonderful cook and always had something good to eat on hand for friends and neighbors, especially the kids. Nancy was a wonderful mother to her three children and was beloved by the neighborhood kids, many who considered her almost a second mom. Her house was the center of activity whether it was "kick the can" in the front yard or hosting a slumber party with pizza and cinnamon rolls. She made certain her children were exposed to many adventures and fun experiences and was the instigator of many great road trips, usually to the mountains in Colorado or the Missouri Ozarks. She loved animals and always had a black Labrador and a cat or two in her household as loyal companions. She enjoyed watching K-State and KU basketball as well as the Royals and the Chiefs and kept up with the various athletic, artistic, musical and academic activities of her four grandchildren. Nancy also adored her neighbors, many of whom helped her with yard and house chores which enabled her to remain in the home she adored for more years than she could have hoped for without their assistance. Her family is eternally grateful to these wonderful Briarwood neighbors. For the last year of her life, Nancy lived at Shawnee Gardens Assisted Living in Shawnee, KS. Although she no longer had her beloved home, her eyesight, or her former independence, she did maintain her sense of humor through the very end of her days.

Nancy is survived by her three children, Julie Carter of Olathe, KS, Nick Carter (Candace) of Aledo, TX and Renee' Carter of New York, NY, and four grandchildren, Jackson and Summer Foth, and, Paulina and Elise Lichtman. Nancy was preceded in death by her parents, her two sisters, Marilyn Eubank and Sally Dyer, and her brother, Jack Shively.

We thank Mom for all she did for us and for passing down her love of nature and all its creatures to her children and grandchildren. She will be dearly missed and always remembered.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made in her name to Helping Hands Humane Society, 5720 SW 21st St., Topeka, KS 66604.