Neola Nixon, 90, a longtime resident of Anacortes, Wash., passed away Friday morning, Oct. 29, 2010, at Fidalgo Care Center, where she had been a resident for the last few years.
Neola was born the last of five children to Ole and Melida (Perso) Lee on Sept. 15, 1920, in Cashton. She grew up there and later attended St. Olaf College and then the University of Wisconsin, where she acted in as many plays as she could, and graduated with a degree in English.
On Sept. 12, 1942, Neola married Carroll Lower of nearby Ontario. While he served in Europe during World War II, Neola, like many young women during the war, joined the workforce, serving as a secretary for the federal government. After Carroll returned from service, the couple moved back to Ontario, where their three children, Candace, Lucy and Stephen, were born.
In 1954 the family moved to Anacortes, where Carroll worked at the Shell refinery. Neola stayed home with the children until they were all in school, at which point she went to work for the Anacortes School District. She taught fourth grade for two years, and then moved to the high school, where she taught English, speech, drama and journalism. During this time, she also directed many student plays, including “Arsenic and Old Lace,” “The Diary of Anne Frank” and “Our Town.” Eventually she shifted from teaching to counseling, working with students in that capacity until 1980, when she retired after 24 years with the school district.
She and Carroll celebrated their retirement with an East Asian cruise, followed by years of traveling around the United States and western Canada. In later years, they went to Europe, visiting a longtime pen pal of Neola’s in England as well as the various places Carroll had been during the war.
After Carroll’s death in 1993, Neola became reacquainted with an old friend and high school sweetheart, Robert Nixon of Appleton. On June 15, 2001, the two were married in Wisconsin, and then returned to Anacortes to live. Neola was a longtime member of the Methodist church in Anacortes. She enjoyed singing and was active in the church choir and as a soloist. She also loved all kinds of handcrafts and sewed, knitted and did needlepoint for years.
Neola is survived by her husband, Robert of Anacortes; her daughter, Candace Lower of Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan; her daughter, Lucy Lower, and her son-in-law, Arthur Thornhill, of Honolulu, Hawaii; her daughter-in-law, Shirlene Lower of Atlanta; five grandchildren; and seven great-grandchildren.
A memorial service will be at 2 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 13, at the United Methodist Church of Anacortes, 2201 H Avenue. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Nature Conservancy or to the local humane society. Arrangements are in the care of Evans Funeral Chapel & Crematory Inc., Anacortes, Wash., and the San Juan Islands. To share memories of Neola, please sign the online guest register at www.evanschapel.com.
