Nancy Lou Caldwell

On October 13, 2026, my beautiful mom, Nancy Lou Caldwell, passed away at the age of 91 at Warm Beach Senior Care Community, with her granddaughter Kimberly and me, her daughter Tammy, lovingly by her side. While saying goodbye is never easy, I am grateful that Kimberly and I could be there with her as she left this world.

Mom was born on November 19, 1934, in Martins Ferry, Ohio. She grew up in Torrance, California, where she lived until 1969, when she moved to Boise, Idaho. In 1975, she moved to Alaska, where she met and married Noah Caldwell, built a life filled with hard work, adventure, animals, and service to their community. In 2016, she moved to Washington State with my husband and me, bringing her life journey full circle as she spent her later years close to family.

Mom was a devoted daughter, sister, aunt, wife, mother, and grandmother. She worked hard throughout her life, building a career in data processing, teletype operations, and bookkeeping. During the construction of the Alaska Pipeline, she even worked at a pump station. She was a woman who wasn't afraid of hard work and who met life's challenges with determination and a willingness to do whatever needed to be done.

Mom and Noah shared a deep commitment to veterans and their community. Together, they helped establish and build AMVETS Post 9 in Wasilla, Alaska. Mom served for many years as the Canteen Manager and bookkeeper, working hard to keep the post running and organizing fundraisers to support the community. She also managed and worked at the AMVETS booth at the Alaska State Fair for many years. A lifelong member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW), she also served on the Ladies Auxiliary board for AMVETS Post 9. Their dedication to veterans and their community was an important part of their lives, and Mom gave so much of herself to those efforts.

But if you asked Mom what mattered most to her, the answer would always be family.

She loved her children fiercely, and her grandchildren brought her tremendous joy. Family gatherings were among her happiest times, and no holiday meant more to her than Christmas. Even as life changed and family members became separated by distance or were lost along the way, Mom never gave up on bringing people together. She continued hosting her beloved Christmas parties for her grandchildren and friends, creating traditions and memories that will live on long after her passing. Those gatherings were her way of keeping everyone connected, reminding us that family matters, and showing her love in the way she knew best.

My mom's love for Noah was another beautiful part of her story. They built a life together, and Mom embraced many of Noah's interests along the way. Together, they raised horses, llamas, ducks, and puppies. Of all the dogs they had, Rottweilers held a special place in her heart. Their life together was full of hard work, shared adventures, and the kind of companionship that comes from building a life side by side.

Mom also loved her trips to Las Vegas with family and friends. She enjoyed those long weekends, the laughter, the company, and, of course, playing the slot machines. She often seemed to have a knack for winning, which only made those trips more fun. It seems fitting that we will gather in Las Vegas to celebrate her life, in a place that held so many happy memories for her.

Mom also found joy in life's simple pleasures. She loved listening to the rain, the smell of freshly cut grass, and music. These little things may seem ordinary to some, but they are the kinds of details that stay with you when you love someone. They become part of how you remember them, little reminders that bring them close again when you least expect it.

Mom was preceded in death by her beloved husband, Noah Caldwell; her parents, Thomas and Effie Faren; her four brothers, Robert, Charles, Tommy, and Jack; and her niece, Gina, and nephew, Allen.

She leaves behind her two children, my brother Rick Grundon and me, Tammy McGraw; her three grandchildren, Christopher McGraw, Kimberly Fierley, and Kalya McGraw Dixon; and her four great-grandchildren, Dagny Fierley, Kira Fierley, Roark Fierley, and Evelyn “Evie” McGraw. She also leaves behind numerous nieces and nephews and many friends whose lives were made better by knowing her.

As her daughter, I know there are no words that can fully capture what Mom meant to our family. She was part of the foundation of our lives, the keeper of traditions, the one who made holidays special, and a woman whose love was woven into so many of our memories. We will miss her voice, her presence, her Christmas gatherings, and all the little things that made her uniquely Mom. We will miss being able to call her, share our news, and know she was there.

But we will also carry her with us. We will see her in the traditions she created, in the stories we tell, in the family she loved so fiercely, and in the laughter that will continue around our holiday tables. Her life was filled with hard work, devotion, adventure, and love. She leaves behind a legacy not only in the years she lived, but in the people she loved and the lives she touched.

A gathering of remembrance and celebration of life will be held on Mom's birthday, November 19, 2026, at the Luxor Resort in Las Vegas, Nevada. The time will be announced.

On her birthday, we will gather in a place she loved to celebrate a life that gave us so many reasons to be grateful. We will remember Mom with love, laughter, stories, and the memories that will always keep her close. It is our chance to honor the woman she was, the family she cherished, and the love she gave us so freely.

Happy birthday, Mom. We will celebrate you, we will miss you, and we will love you always. You will forever be in our hearts.