Nancy Sherlock Stead Duble passed away peacefully in her home at Evergreen Woods, North Branford, CT on November 17, 2020. She was born on January 13, 1927 in Bridgeport, CT to Frederick Stead and Ruth Harvey (Haskell). She graduated from Saint Thomas' School, Rowayton, CT in 1945 and Colby Junior College (Colby Sawyer College), New London, NH in 1947. After college, Nancy worked as a travel agent at American Express in New York City until she married Peter Wright Duble in 1952 at Trinity Episcopal Church in Southport, CT.
Nancy and Peter established their home in North Haven, CT, where she became extremely active in the greater New Haven community. She was a member of the Colonial Dames of America/Connecticut Chapter, the Junior League of New Haven, the Garden Club of New Haven, Ridge Road School PTA, and the New Haven Lawn Club. She worked at Talbots in Hamden for 10 years. More recently, and probably the service that gave her the most joy, was her years serving as an active volunteer at the Creative Arts Workshop and a key facilitator of their annual Celebration of American Crafts holiday sale.
Nancy loved people and was genuinely interested in their stories. She was beautiful inside and out, and always chose to be happy, no matter what life threw at her. She was a gourmet cook and an ardent gardener. She loved parties and entertaining her family and many friends. Nancy loved art, nature, museums, and fashion; she had a flair for style. She traveled extensively throughout her life to Europe, Africa, China, Hawaii, and throughout the USA and the Caribbean. She especially loved the HF Bar Ranch in Saddlestring, WY, where she spent part of every summer riding, hiking, fishing, and enjoying the majestic Big Horn Mountains. She played tennis and paddle tennis, and enjoyed walking, sailing, and skiing.
Nancy's greatest passion was her family. She leaves three children – David Quinby Duble and his wife, Victoria Rock, of San Francisco, Sarah Duble Goodale and her husband, David, of Kauai, HI, and Chris Duble and his wife Kathleen (Benner) of Boxford, MA; a daughter-in-law, Jennifer Trainer Thompson, of Pittsfield, MA; seven grandchildren – Quinby Duble, of San Francisco, Antonia Duble, of Portland, OR, Abigail Purcell, of Jackson Hole, WY, Peter Purcell, of Lake Tahoe, CA, William Purcell, of San Francisco, Liza Duble Tassinari (John Tassinari) of North Reading MA, and Tobey Duble of Boston; and two sisters-in-law – Nancy Duble Becker, of Seattle, WA, and Terry Stead, of Northfield MN. Her son, Peter Wright Duble, Jr., predeceased Nancy in 1989.
A memorial service to celebrate her life will be announced at a later date. In lieu of flowers, donations in her memory may be sent to the Garden Club of New Haven, PO Box 6197, Hamden, CT 06517. Arrangements will be with Beecher and Bennett Funeral Home, 2300 Whitney Avenue, Hamden.