Obituary of Nancy Massey

Nancy Jackson Massey, recovery inspired book of poems Nancy Jackson Massey, 71, of Erlanger, died for the second time on Monday at St. Elizabeth Medical Center South, Edgewood. She died the first time in 1983. In November of that year, she suffered a sudden heart attack. A month later, her heart failed again, and it took more than 50 electrical shocks to get it beating steadily again. She wrote about her recovery in the book of poems she published in 1994, "Wistful Embers: Reflections on Dying, Or Not." She wrote about the grim reality of death, the sadness of leaving loved ones and the fear of her heart failing forever. Writing and talking about the experience helped her to live without fear again, said her daughter, Jean Clayton of Crittenden. "Always, I turned to God," Mrs. Massey told the Post in 1994. "Through Him, I had confidence in life after death." Born in Rockcastle County, Mrs. Massey moved to Northern Kentucky when she was 5. She graduated from Holmes High School in Covington in 1952, and then earned a bachelor's degree at Eastern Kentucky University. She met her future husband there, Stephen Massey. They were married Dec. 31, 1956, the day after he returned home from his Army service in Korea. Both went into education, he as a teacher at Simon Kenton High School and she as a first-grade teacher and reading specialist for the Kenton County public schools. In 1973, she became the first female principal of Taylor Mill Elementary School. "My image of administrators has shifted to the positive side and my respect for teachers has grown," she told The Post a few months after she took the new job. Clayton said that over the years, many former employees have told them how great her mother was to work for. Mrs. Massey was someone who enjoyed life, her daughter said. She remembers her mother and father building snowmen in the winter and hiking mountains in the summer. Her mother loved sports - fishing especially. She would have been happy with a bucket of water and a fishing line dropped into it, Clayton said. Mrs. Massey was an active member of the Hickory Grove Baptist Church, where she taught Sunday school. Other survivors include her husband; another daughter, Lora Castor of Florence; a son, Thomas L. Massey of Florence; brothers, Earl Jackson of Winchester, Ohio, Wendel Jackson of Independence and Charles Jackson of Louisville; a sister, Mildred Hastings of Cincinnati; and 12 grandchildren. Services will be at 11 a.m. Friday at Hickory Grove Baptist Church, Independence. Visitation will be from 4 to 8 p.m. Thursday at Chambers and Grubbs Funeral Home, Independence. Burial will be in Floral Hills Cemetery, Taylor Mill. Memorials are suggested to American Diabetes Association, 8899 Brookside Ave., West Chester, Ohio 45069.