Nancy Ann Clarke

April 23, 1932 ~ November 11, 2018

Nancy Ann Clarke, daughter of Gordon and Ethelyn Strang, began her life as Ethelyn Ann Strang, on April 23, 1932, in Yonkers, New York. Her life ended peacefully on November 11, 2018, after a series of illnesses.

Nancy was an alumna of Beloit College in Wisconsin where she studied art. She married James Asendorf in 1954. They lived and raised their daughters in the Los Angeles area, enjoying an outdoor lifestyle at the beaches, and camping and backpacking in the Eastern Sierra.

Nancy married Ronald Clarke in 1983, and they retired to Minden in 1999. Together, they were active in the local art scene, where they exhibited her paintings and his photography and made many great friends and memories.

A member of the Nevada Artists’ Association, Nancy was an accomplished artist who exhibited widely and won numerous awards for her oil paintings. She was also active in the Cason Valley Art League, and the Tahoe Art League, where she took part in monthly plein air painting sessions at many beautiful outdoor locations. Nancy accompanied the Westlake Village Artists Association on the trip of a lifetime to France, where they spent a day painting in Monet’s garden at Giverny. Other memorable travels included a raft trip through the Grand Canyon and a trip to Alaska with her daughters.

She was an avid skier and enjoyed the local slopes with her family and her good friend, Pat, and was a regular swimmer at the Carson Valley Swim Center. She participated in both activities until the ripe young age of 84.

She was preceded in death by her parents, her baby daughter, Melanie, and her granddaughter-in-law, Crystal Briscoe. Nancy’s survivors include her husband, Ronald; her brother, Kenneth Strang and his wife, Lorraine; her daughters, Cindy Asendorf, Laura Briscoe and her husband Ken; her grandchildren, Ryan and Ashley Briscoe; her great grandson, Austin Briscoe; and her step daughters, Julie Clarke and her husband Riley Conn and Karen Huntzinger.

She is dearly missed.