Author: John Riker

A wonderful family reunion occurred on November 20, 2021, when Nanette DeMuesy, newly 95, rose from her nursing home bed to join her adored parents Laviora and Adam, and her cherished brothers Dick and Tom. Did you hear the rejoicing?

Cause of death was having exhausted an incredibly full life stuffed with laughter and love and books and speeches and humor and wit and duty and purpose and—above all, and most important to Nan—dear family and friends. Hers was a rich, busy and productive life … and she got an early start at it.

Nan was proud to be a ‘Hoover’ kid, and secured a position at her dad’s place of employment as a youngster of eight eager for action, going office to office delivering smiles along with the official company newsletter printed on peach colored paper. Was this what gave her the bug to head off to Northwestern University and earn a journalism degree in 1948?

Nan returned home to North Canton and a position at the Repository reporting the arts scene, before taking a position in front of the chalk board teaching Journalism and English at the old Lincoln High School in 1950. For so many of her lucky students, Miss DeMuesy was THAT teacher—helping them excel at their studies, put out a student newspaper that earned awards, realize their own potentials, and go on to lead happy and productive lives themselves.

Her incredible ability with words brought her to Frease & Shorr Advertising in 1952, as a copy contact. Ten years later, she launched DeMuesy Advertising and Marketing, providing her grateful clients with effective ideas and copy while bringing in her old employer F&S to execute art and design. It was a win-win-win situation for all … the way she always strived to make things.

Living the professional life did come at a cost—for anybody who ever took a bite of anything Nan ever attempted to cook. Unable to domesticate herself the way she could all those feral cats taken in over the years, her only recipe card was for Green Bean Medley and her lone attempt at Thanksgiving Dinner (when her oven conked out requiring a 6am dash across the street to use her neighbor’s) resulted in the poor bird (and Nan) skidding down an icy road upon their behinds. (A new oven was purchased many years later…it was used to store unopened cookbooks).

As a result, many, many, many waitresses throughout North Canton got to well know the face — and the sarcastic humor— of this funny woman who liked to take lunch and dinner with her constant sidekick, Anne Gergel.

But then, Nan was ALWAYS spreading cheer around her favorite place in the whole world. In fact, as was once noted in an article about her: “In 1943, Nan DeMuesy was a cheerleader for North Canton High School—but she never stopped rooting for North Canton.” How true. The evidence is everywhere…

The life-sized bronze of Boss Hoover in Bitzer Park, which she helped initiate and fund. The ‘Returning the Books’ sculpture in front of the library, a gift to her community in honor of her parents. The large plaque in memory of Herbert W. Hoover Sr. spanning the bridge on South Main Street, entirely her brainchild and at her expense.

There was a high dive and lifeguard chair donated in the memory of Howard “Junie” McCue, who did not return from WWII; a drinking water fountain in memory of Alice Hoover Price on city hall plaza: a plaque honoring ‘Rap’ Warstler at the little league fields.

So proud of and so inspired by her life of giving are her nieces Janice Laver (Phil dec.) and Diane Stromberg (Scott), her nephews Scott (Estelle), Rick (Lisa) and Randy (Angela) DeMuesy, her great-niece Bonnie Stromberg, and her great-nephews Scott, Tim and Ricky Stromberg.

Visitation will be held from 5-7pm on Wednesday Dec. 1 at Arnold Funeral Home, 1517 North Market Ave, Canton, Ohio 44714. The family will also receive friends Thursday morning 10:30-11:00 a.m. in the North Canton Community Christian Church. The memorial service will begin at 11:00 a.m. with Rev. Sarah Taylor Peck officiating. A bereavement lunch will follow the service. Family and close friends will then head to North Canton Cemetery for a short graveside service as Nan is laid to rest.

Source: Published on The Repository

Carol Hope Larsen Bringham, 91, of North Andover, MA and formerly of Alexandria, VA and Mission Viejo, CA, passed away peacefully on Saturday, November 6, 2021 at Lawrence General Hospital of cardiac arrest. Carol was born in Ogden, Utah on October 9, 1930 to Boyd and Verda (McLean) Larsen. She grew up in Ogden, Utah, Yellowstone National Park, WY (she loved to tell of her and her siblings acting as pseudo Jr. Park Rangers and giving tourists tours around the park), Rawlings, Powell and Cody, WY, and Landover Hills, MD (near Washington D.C.) and graduated from Western High School in Washington, D.C. She also worked for the Washington Post part time during WWII fostering her love of Journalism while working with war correspondents. 

She attended Northwestern University in Evanston, IL for two years as a Journalism Major. She would tell you that while there, Northwestern (a generally non-football school) went to the Rose Bowl with Ara Parsegian (future Notre Dame great) as coach. 

Her college and Journalism career got sidelined however, when on a visit to Japan to see her parents, who were living there (her father was assigned there for the CIA working on budgeting-so the story goes) she met and then married a young soldier by the name of William (Bill) Neale Bringham. When Bill told people he was getting married and was in Japan everyone assumed it was to a Japanese girl but no, somehow he found one of the only American girls in the country. She was a devoted Army wife and mother to four children. She and Bill moved around the world as Bill rose to the rank of Lt. Col. in 27 years of service, They lived in Fukioka, Japan (where son Bill Jr. was born), Tacoma, WA (where son Rick was born), Fairbanks, AK (where daughter Peggy was born in the middle of winter-oh my!), Baltimore, MD, Ft. Leavenworth, KS, Omaha, NE, Alexandria, VA (where son Jim was born while her husband was in Vietnam), Monterey, CA, Stuttgart, Germany, and Mons, Belgium. 

After Bill retired from the Army they had to decide where to live between Southern CA where Bill grew up and the Washington D.C. area where Carol grew up (mostly). CA won and, still being nomadic, they lived in Santa Monica, San Marino, Fullerton, Walnut Creek, CA and finally in Mission Viejo, CA where they lived for many years. Carol said that she was an expert mover after having moved over 30 times (because in the Army you move even within an assigned area as you get better housing assignments). Her husband Bill died in 2006 after they had been married for 55 years. Shortly thereafter her beloved younger sister Lois Walker, also widowed, asked her to move in together in Alexandria, VA and she said (being from Washington, D.C) heck yes. Thus began the legendary duo dubbed “Thelma and Louise” as they traveled all over the country in Lois’ Prius. Carol loved the camaraderie and political environment she found near Washington D.C. for many years. Unfortunately, a tragic end took Lois from us early in 2013 (she was 10 years younger than Carol) and Carol decided to come live with her son Rick and his wife Erin in North Andover, MA where she has lived the past seven years. 

Carol was a voracious reader, sometimes going through four to five books in a week. She had an intellectual curiosity about a wide range of topics including technical or esoteric things such as fractals in nature, DNA research and Apple cell phone design history. Carol was a wonderful and prolific quilter and made many beautiful quilts for all those close to her. 

Carol was predeceased by her husband Bill, by her sisters, Nancy Turner of Alexandria, VA and Lois Walker and her husband John of Alexandria, VA and is survived by her brothers, Joel Larsen and his wife Judy of Shelburne, VT and Gary Larsen and his wife Sharon, of Stamford, CT. Carol is survived by her four children: Bill Bringham, Jr. of Santa Ana, CA; Rick Bringham and his wife Erin of North Andover, MA; Peggy Henson of Boerne, TX and Jim Bringham and his wife Elizabeth of Maitland, FL. She is survived by five grandchildren: Nicole Zak and her husband Jay of Benton, AR; Danielle Hamilton and her husband Clayton of Cholchester, VT; Chris Henson and his wife Maggie of San Antonio, TX; Grace Bringham and Gianna Bringham of Maitland, FL. She is survived by four great-grandchildren: Jazmin Zak and Nathan Zak of Benton, AR, and Emma Henson and Juniper Henson of San Antonio, TX. She is also survived by many nieces, nephews, grand-nieces and grand-nephews She was also blessed by the constant communication and support she received, even though they didn’t live close by, from her brother Gary Larsen, her niece Donna James and her friend Marian Van Landingham. 

Source: Published by The Washington Post on Nov. 18, 2021.