Nancy Ellen (Morrison) Liming
HIRAM- Nancy Ellen Liming of Hiram died on January 28 after a courageous battle with breast cancer. She passed away peacefully at the Gosnell Hospice Facility in Scarborough with her husband, Paul at her side.
Nancy was born on July 17, 1952 in Norwood, Massachusetts as the second child of John A. Morrison and Marion J. (Hixson) Morrison. Nancy spent her early years in Walpole where she and her older sister Ardith were raised by their maternal grandparents, Ed and Clara Hixson. While still young the two girls moved to Caribou, Maine to be raised by their mother and stepfather, Garth Driscoll. Within the next 10 years the family grew in size with the addition of five younger siblings. Nancy often spoke of her years growing up in Caribou. She often said that it was so cold that they seldom wore shorts even in summer.
While Nancy was in junior high the family relocated to Auburn, taking up residence in a house on Prescott Street. Nancy attended Walton Junior High and Edward Little High school, graduating in 1971. While in high school she started a summer job as a Central Supply technician at Central Maine General Hospital in Lewiston (now CMMC). It was here in 1969 that she met a young man named Paul who was also working a summer job in housekeeping while attending college. The young couple became friendly, however due to Paul’s innate shyness, it was another two years before he had the courage to ask Nancy out on a date. But once the young couple began dating it was evident to both that their life paths were to be together. On Christmas Eve of 1972 Paul presented Nancy with an engagement ring and formally proposed. The couple were married the following August at the Church of the Nazarene in Auburn.
After a honeymoon in Montreal the young couple began their married life together. Nancy continued working full time at CMG while Paul began a job as an accountant at Maine Electronics in Lisbon (a subsidiary of Rockwell). Two years later Paul was offered a transfer to Rockwell’s facility in Anaheim, California. It was a momentous decision but Paul and Nancy both agreed it was an opportunity they couldn’t pass up. Then two days before their planned departure for California Nancy learned she was pregnant. So the young couple set out in their Volkswagen Beetle on a cross-country trip to California.
In California, Paul began his new job while they both prepared for the birth of their child who was born the following June. Over the next few years Nancy stayed home to care for their daughter, Ann, while Paul continued his job at Rockwell and attended night school to earn his masters degree. Once Paul completed his degree and Ann began to attend school, Nancy decided it was her turn to pursue her goal of a career in teaching. She began taking courses in education, eventually earning a degree in early childhood development. She also began working at a Montessori preschool, a job she would maintain for the next 22 years.
In all Nancy and Paul spent 33 years in California where their primary focus and source of pride was their daughter, Ann. She was a star track and cross-country runner in high school and graduated from college in 1998. As an adult she followed her mother’s footsteps in education and currently teaches first grade in Henderson, NV. Ann was married in 2001 and two years later presented Nancy and Paul with their first grandchild, Kaitlyn, followed by a grandson, Brandon four years later. Nancy’s greatest joy in life was spending time with her grandchildren.
Nancy and Paul loved to travel and the many destinations they visited over the years included Niagara Falls, Yellowstone Park, Hawaii, The Grand Canyon, and Mount Rushmore. The highlight of their wanderlust occurred last year with a two-week cruise through the Panama Canal.
Although Paul and Nancy both enjoyed the California lifestyle, they often spoke of their desire to someday return to their New England roots. In 2006 they purchased 30 acres of land in Hiram and two years later, when Paul retired, they moved back to Maine to begin construction of their retirement home. Over the next fifteen years they enjoyed their retirement years in Maine.
In 2016 Nancy was diagnosed with breast cancer. Over the next seven years she endured countless surgeries, radiation treatments, chemotherapy, and doctor visits. Yet through it all she bravely maintained her sense of humor and determination to live life to the fullest. Nancy’s family and friends are deeply saddened by her loss but they are grateful for the time they had with her and for the laughter she brought into their lives.
Besides her parents, Nancy is pre-deceased by her sister, Ardith and her brother, Keith. She is survived by her husband, Paul of Hiram; her daughter Ann and son-in-law Eric Westra of Henderson, Nevada; grandchildren Kaitlyn and Brandon Westra, also of Henderson; sister Leslie Budd of Nashua, NH; sister Faye McCoullough of Live Oak, FL; brother Kevin Driscoll of Durham, NH; sister Marian Overby of Milford, NH; and numerous nieces and nephews.
A private graveside service will be held at a future date.
Online condolence messages can be submitted at the Poitras, Neal & York Funeral Home website, www.mainefuneral.com
Arrangements have been entrusted to Poitras, Neal & York Funeral Home, Cornish, www.mainefuneral.com