Nancy G. Wiley

1938 - 2013

Wiley, Nancy G. CORONADO -- Nancy G. Wiley, 75, of Coronado, California, passed away on October 9, 2013, in San Diego. Nancy was born on March 13, 1938, in Charlotte, North Carolina to Charles and Nancy Gaston. She and her brother Charles Jr. spent their formative years in Savannah, Georgia. After spending two years at the University of Georgia, Nancy's aspirations to travel and to see the world led her to New York City where she worked as a flight attendant. In late 1960, she moved to San Francisco to continue working with Riddle Airlines. On a blind date on Halloween, Nancy met Lt. Richard A. MacKinnon, USN. They married in 1962 in San Francisco and made their first home in Mission Beach. The next decade saw several moves for the couple and their growing family. Nancy and Richard moved from San Diego to the Philippines, Hawaii, San Francisco and finally to Coronado in 1974. Richard died of a terminal illness in December of 1975. Nancy subsequently met and married Capt. Kenneth R. Wiley, USN, Ret. July of 1980. They made their home in Coronado. Nancy enjoyed volunteering with Children's Home Society (now Chances for Children) and as an occasional docent with the Coronado Historical Society. Never one to enter into a dull conversation if she could help it, Nancy could be counted on to liven up any social situation with her observations, anecdotes and keen, dry wit. Frequently she reminded friends and family of the importance of one's ability to laugh at themselves. A longtime friend of the family wrote about Nancy, "I always found her at parties because I knew I would have a good conversation. She was a wonderful friend." Nancy strongly infused a sense of individualism in her three children, always encouraging them to take the path less traveled and not to place importance on what others might think -- a credo she lived by all of her life. She focused on raising children with implicit trust and subsequent self-reliance. Nancy is survived by her husband Kenneth R. Wiley of Coronado, children Anna MacKinnon of Sausalito, CA, Rae and Will Roth of Coronado, CA, Ian and Dina MacKinnon of Norfolk, VA, stepson Kenneth Jr. and Judy Wiley of San Diego, stepdaughter Mary Ellen Rogers of Coronado, grandchildren Lauren Wiley of San Diego, Annabel and Theodore Roth of Coronado, and Keegan and Declan MacKinnon of Norfolk, VA. A memorial service will be held at Christ Episcopal Church, 1114 Ninth Street, in Coronado at 3:30 p.m. on Friday, November 15th. A reception will be held at the Wiley's home in Coronado immediately following. A family interment at sea is scheduled the next day.