Nancy Jo Hawk

1924 - 2019

Nancy Jo Hawk March 13, 1924 - December 23, 2019 SAN DIEGO Nancy Jo Hawk, 95, of San Diego, passed away peacefully on December 23, 2019, in Carlsbad, CA. Nancy was born on March 13, 1924, in Billings, MT, the daughter of Harry and Montana Skaggs. Although she was born during the Great Depression into a family with little money, she had happy memories of her upbringing and, in the end, of her entire life. The oldest of three siblings, Nancy held a variety of summer and after-hour jobs to supplement the family income. She was a drum majorette in high school, graduating with a 3.8 GPA. During Nancy's senior year of high school, her family relocated to Port Angeles, WA. World War II had just begun, and she took a job as chief clerk of the local draft board. While on a business trip to San Francisco, she met Frank Hawk, a Navy pilot who had also grown up in Billings. The two were married on August 17, 1945three days after the war ended. The newlyweds moved to Berkeley, CA, where Nancy worked as a secretary for the Federal Housing Administration. She put her career on hold with the births of Lenore, in 1947, Patricia, in 1950, and Steve, in 1955. When Frank's military career ended, they settled in the Serra Mesa neighborhood of San Diego, where a fourth child, Tony, was born in 1968. A lifelong student, Nancy earned two masters degrees (in education and business) while working as a school secretary at La Jolla Elementary and, later, at Kearny High. She received a PhD in education at the age of 68 and went on to teach at local community colleges. Throughout her life, Nancy loved to dance, travel and swim. She was an avid bodysurfer into her 70s, and could often be seen wading into San Diego's summer surf in her one-piece swimsuit and bathing cap. She was also an active volunteer with the Assistance League of North Coast. Nancy often said that her proudest achievement and happiest memories came from raising her children and serving as surrogate mother to a wide and diverse circle of friends. She will be remembered as a relentlessly upbeat and generous matriarch who laughed hard and often. She once wrote, "I have always felt I was born under a lucky star and have loved every minute of the many blessings bestowed in my direction." Frank Hawk died in 1995, just shy of their 50th wedding anniversary. Nancy is survived by Lenore, Patricia, Steve and Tony, foster son Jim Carter, 11 grandchildren (Dave, Greg, John, Hagen, Emily, Wilson, Cameron, Riley, Spencer, Keegan and Kady), and 4 great-grandchildren (Madeleine, Hazel, Felicity and Araminta). Please direct donations to Hilarity for Charity or the Alzheimer's Foundation. Arrangements are with El Camino Memorial Encinitas.