Nancy Dudley Cole

Nancy Dudley Cole was born February 12, 1927 in Cambridge, Massachusetts and died May 21, 2016 in North Aurora, Illinois. She was born to L. Leland Dudley and Virginia Bartlett Dudley and had one brother, Bartlett Dudley. Nancy graduated from Amherst High School in Amherst, Massachusetts in 1945, then attended Russell Sage College in Troy, New York for one year. She married Alan L. Cole in 1946 and moved to Ann Arbor, Michigan where he attended the University of Michigan. While in Ann Arbor, Nancy attended Eastern Michigan University in Ypsilanti, Michigan. She graduated in 1953 with a Bachelor's of Science and a teaching certificate in Home Economics. She had a son, Dudley Cole in 1954 and a daughter, Donna Cole in 1959. The family moved to the DeKalb, Illinois area in 1969 where her husband was a professor at Northern Illinois University. Nancy obtained a Master's Degree in Foods and Nutrition from Northern Illinois University. She worked for ten years in food service at NIU while becoming a registered dietician. Nancy loved golden retrievers and did some showing in obedience at dog shows. She played the Viola in the Ann Arbor Symphony Orchestra and also played chamber music with friends in DeKalb. After her husband died in 1985, she did volunteer work with the Women's Club and with the elderly. Nancy was able to travel to England, the Scandinavian Countries, Honduras and around the United States. She lived in DeKalb until 2001, when she moved to Peoria to live with her daughter Donna and her family. She was living at home with her daughter at the time of her death.
She is preceded in death by her husband Alan L. Cole, her parents, Leland and Virginia Dudley and her brother Bartlett Dudley. She is survived by her son Dudley Cole, (Ester "Cookie") her granddaughter Megan Washburn (Larry and Bo), her daughter Donna Cole, her granddaughters Elle West (Vincent), Hannah Nordwall, and grandsons Cole Nordwall, and Maxwell Nordwall and her sister in law, Carrie Dudley.
Private graveside burial will be in Fairview Park Cemetery in DeKalb. Cremation was handled by Finch Crematory. To send an online condolence visit: www.finchfuneralhomedekalb.com. Arrangements were entrusted to: Finch Funeral Home 310 Oak St. DeKalb, IL, 60115 (815) 758-3841.