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Nancy J. Moore, 90

Nancy Joy (née Lyon) Moore, 90, of Woodstock, died peacefully at home with family by her side on Monday, Dec.27, 2021.

Nancy was born on Dec. 15, 1931, to Charles and Mildred (Haffron) Lyon in Geneva, Ill. She had a rough start in life, as she lost both of her parents before she was 5 years old. But she was lovingly raised by her maternal grandparents, William and Hildegard Haffron, with lots of help from her aunts and uncles, Forrest and Evelyn Lyon and Ray and Leah MacDonald.

Nancy enjoyed an idyllic childhood growing up West Chicago, Ill., and spending summers at her grandparents’ cottage on Silver Lake in Wautoma, Wis., swimming, canoeing, and working as a lifeguard. She graduated from West Chicago Community High School in 1950 and earned a bachelor’s degree in home economics education from Bradley University in Peoria in 1954. She completed a master’s degree at Northern Illinois University in 1976.

By October 1954, she had been hired by the University of Wisconsin Extension Service as the home agent for Rusk County in Ladysmith, Wis. After three years, she returned to Illinois and served as home advisor in LaSalle, Grundy, and McHenry counties. She retired in 1993 after 39 years in the Cooperative Extension Service. 

Nancy was an educator at heart and was devoted to her homemakers and 4-H’ers. She loved attending the local county and state fairs and was always happy to use her expertise to judge fair entries. Nancy had great fun for many years at Camp Shaw-Waw-Nas-See in Manteno, serving as a counselor for the many 4-H’ers who attended summer camp there.

Nancy believed in volunteering and community service; she was involved with Headstart, Turning Point, and Youth Service Bureau, among many others. She was a member of several professional organizations, including the American Association of University Women, the Gamma Psi Chapter of Delta Kappa Gamma, and the Illinois Association of Extension Home Economists. Nancy was proud to have served the Selective Service System for 20 years. She also wrote a regular column for The Woodstock Independent for many years. Nancy was especially proud of being elected president of the Bradley University Home Economics Alumni Association. 

Nancy won numerous awards for her work in home economics education, notably the National Monsanto Award for Food Safety Series in 1991.

Nancy was an excellent cook and baker and a gifted seamstress. She made many of her own clothes, as well as her children’s, and made beautiful costumes for her daughter’s high school theatrical productions. Reading a good book with a cup of tea by her side was her favorite hobby.

Nancy loved to travel, especially cruises, and after retirement, she went on many with her good friend, Brian Sager. Together they sailed from one end of the Caribbean to the other.

Nancy is survived by daughters, Tamara Reed, Jo (John) Williams, and Stacy (Joseph) Kotyza; grandson, Casey Reed; and granddaughter, Riley (fiancé Joseph Krause) Kotyza. She was preceded in death by her beloved grandson, Parker Lyon Williams.

Memorials may be made in Nancy’s name to McHenry County HCE c/o Carol Giammattei at 801 Twelve Oaks Parkway Woodstock, IL 60098.

The inurnment service will be private at Glen Oak Cemetery, West Chicago.

Call Saunders Funeral Home & Crematory for more info at 815-420-3030.

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