Nancy Olson was born August 23rd, 1926 in Gayville, South Dakota, to parents Roy Hills and Margaret Hunter, and had one sister, Jean Christiansen. They moved to Stanwood in the 1930’s, and Nancy graduated from Stanwood High School in 1944, after which she worked at the Bremerton Naval Shipyard during the war. In 1946, she married Carl Olson, who had served in the Pacific on the USS Makassar Strait and attended rival East Stanwood High School. She worked as an LPN in the Obstetrics Department at Skagit Valley Hospital, and then later at Josephine Sunset Home (as it was then called).
Nancy was an incredibly giving person. When her beloved Stanwood United Methodist Church was in need of remodeling, she volunteered to serve as custodian to decrease church costs. She spent time volunteering for the Stanwood Historical Society and Josephine, and for many years was a member of the board of the Stanwood-Camano Community Fair, where she loved to spend time. If you ever visited the livestock office at the fair, you knew Nancy!
She is survived by her children Janet James (husband Bob), Craig Olson, and Margaret Olson, grandchildren Dave James (wife Carrie) and Lisa Castilleja (husband Bobby) great grandchildren Adara (husband David), Makayla, Aidan, Guinevere, and Logan, along with great great grandchildren Idella, Asher, and Ryker and “adopted daughter” Debbie Bowers.
Please join us in celebrating her life Saturday June 14th, 2025, at 1:00 p.m. at Stanwood United Methodist Church.
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