Nancy deCanizares Corbett, 88, a prominent Oregonian for many years, died of natural causes in Prague, Czech Republic, on May 24, 2005.
Born in Wayne, Pa., on October 15, 1916, Mrs. Corbett had formative educational experiences at the Out of Doors School of Sarasota, Fla., Westtown Friends School near Philadelphia, Pa., and graduated from Beaver Country Day School in Weston, Mass., before graduating from Radcliffe College in Cambridge, Mass., with an A.B. degree in English in 1937.
She subsequently taught at the Out of Door School.
As the widow of one of Oregon's pioneer family members, state legislator, and U.S. Legal Services Corporation executive, Alfred H. Corbett, Nancy Corbett was a long-time resident of Portland and Camp Sherman and a social activist in her own right.
An educator, she trained as a Montessori teacher and served for many terms on the Catlin Gabel School board of trustees, and on the Radcliffe College board of trustees from July 1958 to June 1970.
With antecedents who were writers and poets, including a grandfather regarded as the "poet laureate" of Cuba, Mrs. Corbett had broad literary and scientific interests. She was well-known to her family and friends for her love of learning and language, possessing an extraordinarily rich vocabulary. She wrote poetry and read Homer's Odyssey to her five children at bedtime.
Her husband observed that "Nancy read medical texts as if they were mystery novels." She enrolled in a college chemistry course at age 80, loved to garden, and was a "fantastic" cook who loved to give dinner parties.
These passions, as well as those for music and visual arts, were shared by her children and grandchildren. Mrs. Corbett also demonstrated her deep concerns for public policy and cultural matters, participating in and supporting not only her husband's public service career, but also the League of Women Voters, Junior League, the World Affairs Council, the Portland Art Museum, the Urban League and NAACP, and served as president of the Jane Jefferson Democratic Women's Club.
Among the high points of her life was her affiliation with Adlai Stevenson and his campaigns for president in 1952 and 1956.
In addition to her daughters, Joan and Anne, Mrs. Corbett is survived by her two sons, Frederic deCanizares Corbett of Coos Bay, and Alfred Hoyt Corbett, Jr. of Bainbridge Island, Wash., seven grandchildren, and eight great-grandchildren. A fifth child, Hamilton ("Tony") Corbett preceded her in death in 1970.
A memorial service will be held Sunday, June 26 at 3:00 at the Cabell Center of the Catlin Gabel School. Donations in her memory may be sent to the Catlin Gabel School.
Published by The Oregonian on Jun. 21, 2005. ~ km
Nancy deCanizares Corbett, 88, a prominent Oregonian for many years, died of natural causes in Prague, Czech Republic, on May 24, 2005.
Born in Wayne, Pa., on October 15, 1916, Mrs. Corbett had formative educational experiences at the Out of Doors School of Sarasota, Fla., Westtown Friends School near Philadelphia, Pa., and graduated from Beaver Country Day School in Weston, Mass., before graduating from Radcliffe College in Cambridge, Mass., with an A.B. degree in English in 1937.
She subsequently taught at the Out of Door School.
As the widow of one of Oregon's pioneer family members, state legislator, and U.S. Legal Services Corporation executive, Alfred H. Corbett, Nancy Corbett was a long-time resident of Portland and Camp Sherman and a social activist in her own right.
An educator, she trained as a Montessori teacher and served for many terms on the Catlin Gabel School board of trustees, and on the Radcliffe College board of trustees from July 1958 to June 1970.
With antecedents who were writers and poets, including a grandfather regarded as the "poet laureate" of Cuba, Mrs. Corbett had broad literary and scientific interests. She was well-known to her family and friends for her love of learning and language, possessing an extraordinarily rich vocabulary. She wrote poetry and read Homer's Odyssey to her five children at bedtime.
Her husband observed that "Nancy read medical texts as if they were mystery novels." She enrolled in a college chemistry course at age 80, loved to garden, and was a "fantastic" cook who loved to give dinner parties.
These passions, as well as those for music and visual arts, were shared by her children and grandchildren. Mrs. Corbett also demonstrated her deep concerns for public policy and cultural matters, participating in and supporting not only her husband's public service career, but also the League of Women Voters, Junior League, the World Affairs Council, the Portland Art Museum, the Urban League and NAACP, and served as president of the Jane Jefferson Democratic Women's Club.
Among the high points of her life was her affiliation with Adlai Stevenson and his campaigns for president in 1952 and 1956.
In addition to her daughters, Joan and Anne, Mrs. Corbett is survived by her two sons, Frederic deCanizares Corbett of Coos Bay, and Alfred Hoyt Corbett, Jr. of Bainbridge Island, Wash., seven grandchildren, and eight great-grandchildren. A fifth child, Hamilton ("Tony") Corbett preceded her in death in 1970.
A memorial service will be held Sunday, June 26 at 3:00 at the Cabell Center of the Catlin Gabel School. Donations in her memory may be sent to the Catlin Gabel School.
Published by The Oregonian on Jun. 21, 2005. ~ km
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Wife of Alfred Hoyt Corbett Sr. - Married 6/24/1939.
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