Recent obituary: Nadine Anderson

(Publisher’s note: Chelsea has lost a wonderful and positive city ambassador with the passing of Nadine Anderson. She was always a fierce supporter of this community, a loving and all around wonderful person.)

Nadine Anderson

On May 18,1952, in Jamestown, New York, the world welcomed the 5th child of C. Duane Anderson and Doris (Peterson) Anderson, when Nadine A. Anderson joined her siblings on the farm on Palm Road.

She was unique from birth in many ways including a congenital heart condition that required pioneering repair surgery in 1962, when she was 10 years old. That surgery along with additional repairs in 2004 kept her heart beating until the early morning hours of Aug. 24, 2018 in Saline, MI, when Nadine peacefully left this earthly plain.

Her final days were filled with family and friends showering her with their love and admiration for an amazing life well lived and well loved by all.

Gentle, kind and always smiling and giggling, Nadine lived her life respecting each and every person she met with grace and love. That might explain how she remained married to the same guy for nearly 44 years.  She married her “gorgeous” husband Robert (Bob) Pierce on a lark on Dec. 7, 1974 in their wedding chapel AKA their first apartment at 901 E. Second Street in Jamestown, New York.

One of greatest moments in her life was when she and Bob brought their son Michael R. Pierce of Ann Arbor, MI into their lives in 1980. She treasured each moment they spent together especially in her final days as he held her hand and comforted her at her bedside.

A lifelong educator, Nadine was an immensely proud graduate of the public education system in New York State. In 1970, she graduated from Falconer Central School. She received degrees from Jamestown Community College in 1972 and State University of New York College at Buffalo in 1979. She remained a tireless advocate for Public Schools throughout her life.

Alongside her lifelong partner Bob, she sought to take advantage of opportunities whenever and wherever they appeared. She began her teaching career in 1979 with Montgomery County Board of Mental Retardation in Dayton, OH. In 1982, she moved to Charlottesville, VA. There she taught special education at Jack Jouett Middle School for Albemarle County Schools.

In 1989, she once again smiled and agreed to follow Bob to a new home in Vandalia, OH. There she taught special education at Troy City Schools. The next move in 1992 brought her to Chelsea, MI, where she taught special education and 3rd grade for Hanover Horton Schools.  Exasperated and disillusioned by the direction of public education in the state of Michigan, Nadine retired from teaching in 2008.

Along the way, Nadine always wanting to learn and experience new things. She joined with Bob to open Pierce’s Pastries Plus in Chelsea in 1997 where the experience of serving coffee, donuts and fun was a launching pad for goodwill and love for the people and community of Chelsea. It was during this time that the family decided to make Chelsea their permanent home.

The rare genetic disease, Erythropoietic Protoporphyria (EPP) that extinguished her bright light of life cannot overshadow the love she expressed for all she met. Always the educator, her heroic decision to move from this life was followed by her decision to share her body with the medical community so they could learn more about her disease.

As directed by Nadine, there will be a party held on Sept. 15, 2018 from 4-7 p.m. at the Village Conference Center in Chelsea to celebrate all the goodness she brought to this world.

For the full obituary, please click here.