Nancy Elaine Kaufman

All my days were written in Your book and planned before a single one of them began. Psalm 139:16b Nancy was born December 16, 1940, at Saint Bernadine's Hospital in San Bernardino, CA, because there was no hospital in Victorville where her parents lived. She joined her parents, Don and Dorothy, and her sister, Donna. Later Richard and Bob were added to their family. When Bob was a baby, her family moved to a house with an acre of land in Adelanto, CA. Don was a chemist at the cement company and in his spare time raised a garden and a variety of animals as his hobby. He raised turkeys, goats, rabbits, pigeons, chickens and pigs. The children also had pets-a horse, dogs and cats. As an adult, Nancy still preferred goat milk. Nancy helped take care of her little brother Bob. Bob has fond memories of the summer he and Nancy spent hours on the beach at Belmont Shore, Long Beach, while their mother went to summer school. Nancy and bob reminisced recently about the day he was wading and a sneaker wave knocked him down. Nancy rushed over and fished him out of the water, rescuing him from the ocean. Their family also spent time camping at several California beaches and traveling to state parks when their father had vacation. Their mother began teaching when Nancy was about 10 because teachers were in short supply in the desert. Dorothy took classes in the evening and in the summer to complete her certification. Nancy learned to cook as one of her chores, but she never really enjoyed cooking. She did, however, appreciate home cooked food. Nancy graduated from Victor Valley Union High School. She moved to Hollywood to attend Immaculate Heart College for women. Nancy was a cradle Catholic, being raised Catholic and remaining Catholic her whole life. While in college, she formed a close and enduring friendship with a group of 3 other young women. Her friend from that group, Barbara Robillard, who is like a sister to Nancy, says they had 67 years of shared memories and deep spiritual connections. Barbara added that Nancy's "best quality was that she gave me unconditional love. She will always be in my heart." The students at Loyola, the men's Catholic college nearby had activities with the women at Immaculate Heart. Nancy met a young man from Peru at Loyola and she became engaged to him, so she moved to Peru to teach English and to consider whether she would like to live there. After a year, she decided to break her engagement and moved back to the US. She attended Victor Valley Junior College and Long Beach State and began working at the DMV in Long Beach. Nancy was transferred by the DMV to San Francisco where she had lots of adventures as a driver's license examiner on the hills and streets of the area. She also lived in Oakland, Phoenix, and the Las Vegas area (Henderson). She spent part of her career with the Nevada DMV. While she worked in Nevada, Nancy spent time helping out with her older sister and her mother who both lived in California. Nany supervised the care of her mother, and the family was able to fulfill Dorothy's wish to stay in her own home until she passed away at the age of 102. When Nancy was young, she was engaged twice, but she decided she preferred the single life. She loved cats and rescued several. Reading and watching TV series were two favorite hobbies. She joked that she had memorized "Murder She Wrote." After Nancy retired, she made the difficult decision to leave her home and friends in Nevada. She felt it was best to move to the Mennonite Village to be near her remaining brother, Bob. Nancy's family at that time consisted of her brother Bob and wife Barbara, Albany, OR, her nephew Anthony and Wife Emily, of Lowden, WA (Walla Wala area), and her nephew Randy and wife Arum, living in Busan, South Korea. She was Great Aunt to 8 children, William, Elysse, Matthew, Timothy, Christopher, Jonathan, Logan and Lucy. They range in age from 19 to 1. This past summer Nancy was able to spend time with all of them. Her godchildren and cousins were important to her as well. Nancy was an honorary member of Bob's wife's family, the Leichtys, and she enjoyed lots of family gatherings with them. Nancy was a kind, generous and caring person and she will be missed by many. To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Nancy Elaine Kaufman, please visit our floral store.