Nancy Nye Priest

1927 - 2020

Nancy Nye Priest passed away peacefully at her home on November 20, 2020, at the age of 93, with her two cats curled up on the bed with her. She was born in Denver, June 15,1927 to George M. Nye and Ione Finch Nye, and was the oldest of three children.

Nancy married Ben G. M. Priest, a New Englander, and introduced him to her love the west. Their first date was hunting for arrowheads on the bluffs south of Denver.

Nancy was a life long learner. She delighted in exploring the natural world and reveled in animals. She held passions for all aspects of history. A 1939 graduate of Graland Country Day School, she went on to high school, which she hated, and then to the University of Denver where she found a home in the art department. She graduated with a BA in Art in 1948 and completed her masters degree in education in 1950.

She then returned to Graland and taught for 43 years. Named a Master Teacher, she carried on the tradition of the medieval knighting started by Ruth Gorham, and added to it the Roman Museum, and the Mesa Verde trip for sixth graders. She firmly believed we could improve the world through a better understanding of cultures and their history.

John Caulkins Graland ’81… wrote the following to honor her at the Master Teachers’ salute:

“Growing up at Graland, everyone looked forward to fifth grade. That, of course, was the year you would finally have Mrs. Priest for your history teacher. We had all seen her around the campus: . . . her size, bright blue eyes, barrette in her pixie-cut hair, that smile and, most of all, that warm energy about her that told you she belonged there. And she was fun! I will never forget how jealous I was the day that my brother, George, brought home his Roman Colosseum. I would later realize that Mrs. Priest could build a Roman Colosseum in the dark. Think of the tales she brought to life: Ancient Rome (Hannibal crossing the Alps with elephants), Arthur’s Round Table (the Sword in the Stone), or the ancient Anasazi (Mesa Verde in our own backyard).

She taught us that the past is something to relive, to experience, to let one’s imagination unfold. She knew that a fifth or sixth-grader has an even better sense of curiosity than an archaeologist, and just how important it is to kindle the imagination while teaching independence, self-discipline, and respect for others and the environment.  Can you imagine a more hands-on approach to learning? In building our Roman museum, making shields for knighting, or identifying Anasazi potsherds, we pushed ourselves to better understand and relive the past.“ 

https://www.graland.org/news-detail?pk=891334

More information about her time at Graland and the Nancy Nye Priest Alumni Award in her honor is on the Graland website https://www.graland.org/news-detail?pk=891327

An amazing artist, she started drawing in perspective before the age of five, and art pervaded every aspect of her life. During her travels in Europe, she sketched and captured scenes as quickly as a photographer. She was a skilled potter and sculptor.  Additionally, she served as head set designer for the production of the musical Bye Bye Birdie at the Brunswick Summer Playhouse (now the Maine Music Theater).

She loved the southwest and had an in depth knowledge of the art and cultures of the area. With her husband Ben, they gathered an impressive collection of jewelry, weaving and art of the Navajo, Hopi and Hispanic cultures, which they used as teaching tools throughout their careers. Ever the teacher, she loved sharing her knowledge with everyone and challenging them to integrate their new found understanding with current day issues.

Nancy designed a classic adobe house, and in 1968  with her husband Ben and her daughter Sue, she made bricks all summer long and built the house. The house became the backdrop for her extensive collection and a teaching tool itself.

Nancy was an animal person. Friends may remember Cotsie, the house chicken, or Dindinee, the orphan sheep who was bottle fed in the kitchen each night, or Peggy, the piglet, who lived in a playpen in the kitchen and went to Graland’s prekindergarten every day to the delight of the students. She had dogs, cats, pigs, chickens and most important, her sheep. As a breeder of Navajo Churro Sheep, the oldest breed of sheep in the United States, she helped to conserve the breed. Her ewes were known for their quality and her rams for their prepotency, passing the desired qualities of the breed to their offspring. Her fleeces regularly took championships ribbons at a variety of wool shows including Estes Park and Santa Fe.

She is survived by her daughter Susan Priest Pierce of Houlton, Maine, Susan Handwerk (sister), Bayfield, CO, Camille Pierce, Hanover, NH, Ted Handwerk, Bayfield, CO, Carl Rhodes Newport, OR, Chris Rhodes and his children, Durango, CO, Ann Hunsaker, Denver, CO, Nancy Hunsaker, Bradley Hunsaker, Debbie Spencer, Denver, CO, and good friends, Ted and Patty Tedesco, Karen and Gary Hansen, Valerie Gates, Glenn Dupler (sheep whisperer) and Thomas Bueno. Nancy was predeceased by her husband Ben G. M. Priest, her parents George M. and Ione F. Nye, her brother George M. Nye Jr, and her niece Cathy Handwerk Rhodes.

Her ashes will be scattered by the windmill on her property. Due to Covid 19, a there will be no gathering of remembrance at this time. Donations in her memory can be made to Graland Country Day School scholarship fund, 55 Clermont St, Denver, CO, 80220 (graland.org), or the Denver Dumb Friends League, 2080 S. Quebec St. Denver, CO 80231-3298 (ddfl.org)

Please visit Youtube for a wonderful video about Nancy Priest’s time at Graland.

YouTube.com/watch?v=H82327EMKBk