Mann, Nancy S. (Prevett) of North Attleboro formerly of Dedham, April 25, 2026. Beloved wife of the late Ernest F. Mann. Loving mother of Lauren Chaney of Dunstable, Barbara Holton of Middleboro, Dorothy Mann of Hull, Stephen J. Mann and his wife Joanne of Burlington and Maureen Mann and her partner Robert Barker of Natick. Also survived by 11 grandchildren, 20 great-grandchildren and 2 great-great-grandchildren. Sister of Peter Prevett and his wife Anne of Amherst, New Hampshire. Daughter of the late Dominic and Jenny (Capozzi) Prevett.
Over her 95 years, Nancy lived ahead of her time. She worked alongside her father, Dominic Prevett, a carpenter and livestock entrepreneur who made the most of the half-acre lot in “the manor” growing peaches, pears, grapes, and garden vegetables while raising hundreds of chickens and turkeys. She hoped for art school after graduating from Saint Thomas Aquinas in West Roxbury, a dream considered a poor use of funds for a woman in 1948. Instead she commuted into the city to work for the Butler Shoe Company.
She met her devoted husband Ernest Frank Mann at the Roll Land skating rink in Norwood and married in 1951.
Her artistry emerged within her home life on Monroe Street in Dedham as she and Ernest worked hard to raise five children, ensuring each had the values, work ethics, and opportunities to grow in whatever direction their hearts called them. She raised four girls and a boy while often working evenings. At the cusp of the computer age, she worked for Business Computer Services striving for a job in an industry that she noticed pooled women into key punch operator positions. Her mantra was for fairness, not just for women, but for all workers. Each employer understood her progressive work/life balance policy. It was not an apology, but a priority, “My family comes first.”
In 1982, when the last of their children fledged, she and Ernest moved to Plainville, MA to build a “solar home” and plant organic gardens, again ahead of her time, thinking of the health of the world and future generations. She took her retirement from the Polaroid Corporation, built the big sun room, set up a sewing area, staked out her gardens, and basked in the glow of so many jobs well done.
She cared for Ernest for 20 years after he developed a neurological disorder in 1995. Her love of sewing and growing helped her through those difficult years, welcoming each of her grandchildren and great-grandchildren into the world with fresh new quilts designed by Grandma. When Ernest passed away in 2014, she moved to Riverside Park in North Attleboro.
Moving to a smaller home did not dictate a smaller life. Her time was her own and she filled it with a collection of gardening, exercise, ukelele performances, senior trips, and art projects. Her “schedule” was packed even on Sunday when she followed the Patriots, recording the game scores, times, and dates, like she was the coach. Who knows, in a different time?
Her greatest secret to living 95 years remains unknown, but it might have something to do with her meetings with God each week. She was always a part of a church and an active member of their works to help others, finding time to make quilts for those facing hard times. She will be missed by so many. And it is in celebration of a life well lived that we gather the solace and stamina to go forward and do the same.
Visitation at the George F. Doherty & Sons Wilson-Cannon Funeral Home, 456 High St. Dedham on Friday, May 1, from 4-7pm. Graveside service at St. Mary Cemetery, North Attleboro on Saturday, May 2, at 10am. Relatives and friends kindly invited. In lieu of flowers expressions of sympathy may be made in Nancy’s memory to North Attleboro Council on Aging, 204 Elm St. North Attleboro, MA 02760.