Nancye Panella

On Christmas morning, December 25, 2025, Nancye Lynn (Huff) Panella went home to be with her Lord, after a sudden stroke on Christmas Eve. A beloved mother, sister, grandmother, and friend to many, Nancye was born on April 28, 1939 in Washington D.C. to Dorothy (Rust) Christmas and Knox Huff. Nancye was the oldest of 3 children, preceding in death her younger brother, Knox Huff III, and joining in Heaven her younger sister, Sandye (Huff) Saintsing. Nancye was preceded in death as well by her husband, Dan Panella, and is survived by her three children and their spouses: David Alan Jackson, Renee (Paul) Anderson, and Jonathan Kip (Jennifer) Jackson, as well as by her step-children and their spouses: Anthony (Jan) Panella and Debbie (John) Dvorak. She will be greatly missed by all of them, as well as by her five grandchildren: Haley Anderson, Daken Anderson, Sabrina Jackson, Isabella Jackson and Sophia Jackson.

Nancye attended the University of Mississippi (Ole Miss), earning a degree in Home Economics with a minor in Interior Design. She was well known by many for her seamstress and clothing design abilities! While living in Mississippi, she dedicated herself to helping vulnerable children in need of a loving home by becoming a foster parent. She was able to provide care for over 40 foster children over a span of 14 years during this time. Her commitment to children was abundantly clear through the impact she made on all of these young lives!

Nancye continued to impact the lives of children as a Substitute Teacher for the local school district in Mississippi. Her dedication to the United States of America and its veterans took her from Lookout Tower Fire Conservation Aide with with the Department of Natural Forestry; to Personnel Manager Specialist for Robins Air Force Base; to a Crew Leader for the Census Bureau in Hattiesburg, Mississippi; to a VA Claims Examiner in Montgomery, Alabama; to Personnel Management Specialist at both the Miami and Cleveland VAMC; and finally as a Health System Specialist with the VA for CBOCs in Cleveland, Ohio. In this capacity, she was the Chief Operating Officer of 13 outpatient CBOCs in Northeastern Ohio. Her dedication, perseverance, and impervious work ethic positively impacted over 96,000 veterans, their families, and over 750 CBOC employees. She retired from the Department of Veterans Affairs after over 20 years of success in her career with the government overall.

Nancye was a follower of the Lord and she was involved in several churches throughout her lifetime, where she sang in choirs and took her children to learn about and follow Jesus. She most recently was a proud member of the Bethel Church of Tallmadge, where she enjoyed attending Sunday School classes and spending time with her friends there. Nancye found joy in helping others and enjoyed sharing the life lessons she had learned throughout her life to others to help them grow and understand the world around them better. She loved technology, fashion, decorating her home, playing Solitaire, and loving on her puppy, Bridget. And she was a shopper extraordinare - with an uncanny ability to find just the right item and style in a way that no one else could!

Nancye will be greatly missed by all of her family and friends, as the wonderful memory of the life she lived and the impact she had on us all will carry on in our hearts forever. In accordance with her wishes, a commemorative spreading of her ashes will be done privately by her family at a later date in lieu of a funeral service. However, her family members would all like to thank each and every one of you for the blessing you were to Nancye and for sharing in her joy throughout the years. Instead of flowers, memorials to honor Nancye can be made in the form of donations to the Bethel Church of Tallmadge via www.bcot.org/give (drop down box noting donation to be made in honor of Nancye Panella) or mailed to Bethel Church, PO Box 440 Tallmadge, Ohio 44278. May her memory continue to be an inspiration for others as her legacy lives on through each and every one of us!