Nancy Cowperthwait Obituary
Nancy Jeanne Cowperthwait (nee Hunt), a veteran and longtime resident of Mesa, Arizona, passed away after a long illness on September 9, 2022. Nancy was born in Concord, MA on January 28, 1938 to John Paul Hunt and Mary Ethel Hunt (nee McDonald). Siblings include Mary, John, Robert, Judith, Susan, Constance, Dorothy, Terrence and Kathleen. Nancy was preceded in death by her parents and several siblings. Nancy attended Malden High School (’55) before graduating from Boston College (’59) with a BS degree in Nursing. Nancy was commissioned in 1959 to the United States Navy as a lieutenant and worked as a pediatric nurse until she left the Navy in 1963 to start a family. She also earned a MEd degree with an emphasis on Guidance and Counseling from Bowie State University (‘75) in MD. On November 10, 1962, Nancy married the love of her life, William (Bill) Charles Cowperthwait in Okinawa, Japan. Bill preceded Nancy in death by less than two months. In addition to Bill, Nancy is survived by her four children: Christopher (spouse Sheri), Maureen Nemec (spouse Gary), William K. (spouse Catherine), and Daniel (spouse Shelley.) She is also survived by many grandchildren, nieces and nephews. Nancy was a founding member of St Bridget’s Catholic Church in Mesa. She was very active in her community at the Wells in Mesa. Nancy devoted much of her time in the last 10 years to the St Vincent de Paul Society as a part of the St Bridget’s Conference of which she is a past president. While Nancy was living in military housing and raising a family on Camp Lejeune in NC, she helped create a program with the Onslow County Dept. of Social Services to prevent child abuse and neglect especially among young military families. PEERS is still in existence today in Jacksonville, NC, and recently celebrated its 45-year anniversary. PEERS is a program designed to offer Parents, Education, Empathy, Rapport and Support. When Bill received a job offer in Mesa, AZ, Nancy joined Bill there in 1986. Nancy went on to work for Parents Anonymous of Arizona until she retired. Nancy and Bill loved to travel and spent many years crisscrossing the country in their RV after both retired. Nancy was a woman of faith, family and country. She loved being a Marine wife for 20 plus years and supported her husband and children in numerous family moves. A funeral mass will be held on Thursday, October 13, 2022 , at 10am at St Bridget’s Catholic Church, 2213 N Lindsay Rd in Mesa. A remembrance may be made to Hospice of the Valley or St Vincent DePaul. A joint internment for both Nancy and Bill will be at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia at a later date.
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