Nancy Ann Zook

Nancy Ann Zook, age 60, born and raised in Los Angeles, CA, passed away unexpectedly on April 18, 2013. Nancy made a big impact on the world in her too-short life as a mother, wife, friend, and activist. She was most proud of her daughter Caitlin and she was most committed to her husband Thom Trause and her sister friends Sara Hess and Valerie Reine. Her life's work was dedicated to children and youth, starting as a 3rd grade teacher in California after graduating from California State University Northridge with a BA in English and Education and an MA in Literature. After she moved to Ithaca in 1982, she worked with pregnant and parenting teens at the Child Development Council and in her 23 years as a Coordinator of Community Youth Services for the Tompkins County, she helped develop, fund, monitor, and coordinate a wide variety of youth development and risk reduction programs including those for runaway and homeless youth. She was passionate about working with people, always striving to bring them together to work toward the common good. Always the first to know what was happening, in her words ‘being a professional nosy-body'. She helped coordinate youth employment programs and services for children and families with multiple needs. She served as Chair of Tompkins County's Family Court Advisory Council and on the NYS Runaway and Homeless Youth Advisory Council, in addition to working closely with The Learning Web and Cornell on the Independent Living Survey conducted by and for homeless youth. In recognition of those efforts, she earned Challenge's Collaborator of the Year Award. Nancy always saw the good in everyone, and her warm, friendly, and helpful personality enabled her to develop hundreds of positive working relationships with colleagues in public and private agencies throughout Tompkins County.
Nancy had eclectic interests; she was an avid gardener and reader. She worked at Smedley's bookshop and her last errand was a visit to the TC Public Library. She loved all birds, but especially parrots and shared her home with her 3 dachshunds. For years, Nancy was a member of the Ithaca Women's Radio Collective and in recent years loved making transatlantic crossings on the QEII with her husband Thom.
Nancy was pre-deceased by her mother, Rachel Zook and her father, John Zook, and is survived by her husband Thom Trause, daughter Caitlin Thomas Zook, brother Brad Zook (Candy Wilson), sister-in-law Lorraine Trause, niece Robin Drew, and former partner Heather Sheridan-Thomas (Sloan). Loved by many, Nancy will be greatly missed.

Calling hours will be held at Bangs Funeral Home, Ithaca, NY on Monday, April 22 from 4:00 to 7:00pm. A memorial service to celebrate Nancy's life will be held later in May. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations in Nancy's name can be made to Child Development Council's Teen program, the Learning Web, and Bridges.