Nancy Kay Dickerson Caldwell passed away on Monday, August 27, 2018 in Seattle, WA, from complications due to late stages of Alzheimer's Disease.  Born June 16, 1943, in Wichita, KS, Nancy was the first child of Lala Juanita Cook Dickerson and Frank Kenneth Dickerson.

Graduating from Wichita East High School in 1961, Nancy attended Kansas University, Fort Hays State University, and Wichita State University for her undergraduate degree and completed her master's in education in 1978 at Wichita State University. In 1966, she married Spencer Caldwell and in 1969 gave birth to her only child, daughter Cathie Caldwell. The Caldwells divorced in 1972.

A pioneer for women's rights and a trailblazing feminist who actively worked for the Equal Rights Amendment, Nancy was a co-founding member of the Wichita Area Rape Center in 1974 (now the Wichita Area Sexual Assault Center). Nancy also spent her employment years helping others: she worked as a grade school teacher, teacher at the Institute of Logopedics (now Heartspring), counselor, social worker, case manager, and advocate for people with mental health and chemical dependency issues.

In 1985, Nancy and Cathie moved to Seattle, WA, and they lived in the busy, urban neighborhood of Capital Hill where she embraced the diversity of her neighbors. While a member of the Cascade Bicycle Club, Nancy completed the Seattle-to-Portland ride twice (202 miles), and was an active walker, movie goer, and yoga practitioner. She later bought a house in the Columbia City neighborhood of south Seattle where she worked with her neighbor, the Feral Cat Clinic and Rainier Vet Hospital, to manage and prevent the growth of a large feral cat colony on her block.

In an effort to reconnect to her Kansas roots, Nancy returned to live in Wichita in the mid-2000s only to return to Seattle with Cathie in 2010 after her diagnosis of Alzheimer's Disease. She spent her final years laughing and loving with Cathie and her daughter's long-time partner Fred Annett.

Nancy enjoyed living by the calming waters of Haller Lake in Seattle and at Gaffney House, a memory care home. After Gaffney House closed, the transition to a second care facility proved too much for Nancy, and within three months, she succumbed to this terrible disease. Her caregivers called her Dancy Nancy because her love of music and dancing never left her. She was smiling and laughing up to the end.

Nancy is survived by daughter Cathie Caldwell of Seattle, WA, her brother Bill Dickerson of McCall, ID, her first cousin Marlis Manley Broadhead of Louisburg, KS and many other family and friends who loved her dearly.

A celebration of Nancy's life will be held on October 27, 2018, at Holy Cross Lutheran Church, 600 N. Greenwich Rd. in Wichita, in the Fellowship Hall from 2:00 to 4:00. Light refreshments will be served.  Please feel free to bring photos and memories to share. In lieu of flowers, the family would prefer donations be made to local Alzheimer's Association chapters. www.alz.org