Nancy Jane (Shaner) Conners

Nancy Jane Shaner Conners passed away peacefully with grace and dignity on May 15, 2022. Nancy was born in Kittanning, Pennsylvania to Kenneth and Ina (Atkins) Shaner on June 9, 1945. Nancy grew up in Kittanning with her brothers Tom and John and sisters Marcia and Sally. She graduated from Kittanning High School where she met the love of her life, Ron Conners. Nancy and Ron were married June 8, 1963 and started their family raising three daughters in Newton Falls, Ohio, in a neighborhood where everyone was not just friends but also family.

Nancy was the perfect wife and mother, always putting her family’s needs first and foremost. This love for her family carried over to when she became a grandmother, or “Kacka” as she was referred to by all of her grandchildren.

During her life, Nancy was passionate about her flower beds, cross stitching, camping with Ron in their Silver Bullet and searching for beach glass on the shores of Lake Erie.

In 2019, Nancy began her journey with ALS. This is a journey that showed all who knew her how courageous and strong she truly was. The care that Ron provided for her was a true testament of unconditional love, one that will never be forgotten by their family. His love and support each day gave her the strength that she needed while “running against the wind”.

Our mom was not only the best mom to us growing up, but became our best friend as we got older. We did everything together and there was always lots of laughter. We all inherited the Shaner sense of humor from her. Mom was a big Bob Seger fan and her motto became “Running Against The Wind” when her journey with ALS was beginning to become a struggle. No more “Running Against The Wind” now mom, you can fly high now and hurt no more.

Nancy was preceded in death by her parents, her brother Tom Shaner and sisters Marcia Kennedy and Sally Shaner.

She is survived by her husband of nearly 59 years, Ron Conners. Her three daughters; Lisa (Bill) Shaulis, Amy (Bob) Sebulsky and Ina (Fred) Sayre. Nancy was blessed with six grandchildren and three great-grandchildren; Matthew Shaulis, Christopher Shaulis, Amanda (Adam) Lamancusa, Caroline Lindner, John Lindner (and girlfriend Chloe), Ava Sayre, Will Shaulis and Maya & CJ Lamancusa. Nancy is also survived by her “brother John” (Jane) Shaner whom she truly loved and looked up to, sister-in-laws Carol Shaner and Deanna Conners…along with many nieces and nephews. Nancy also leaves behind two very close friends and daughters by choice, Venita Collins and Tammy Higgins.

Her family would like to thank the staff of Adoration Hospice; Renate, Trinity, Christina, Donnie, Desi and CoCo for the love and care that they provided. Without this team, none of us could have conquered this journey. The family would also like to thank the Phi Delta Theta fraternity of Akron and the “Live Like Lou” foundation for adopting our family as a part of their philanthropy mission of bringing awareness to ALS and supporting families who are affected by this horrible disease by providing support so that we were able to focus on our family rather than the things that needed to be done around the house. Thank you to so many of our family, friends and neighbors who were always there for all of us.

Nancy’s journey with ALS has come full circle, she no longer is struggling to “run against the wind”. She can join her family in heaven where they can roam the beaches searching for that perfect piece of glass or that perfect shell……yelling “Hootie Hoo” as they find each one. We all take comfort in knowing that she will welcome us one day with Toby and Jake by her side.

Arrangements have been provided by Borowski Memorial Home. Cremation has taken place and a private celebration of life, led by Pastor Mark Vincent, will take place at a later date at her favorite beach at Geneva-On-The-Lake. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to your local hospice, local State Park or animal rescue in honor of Nancy.

.

To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Nancy Jane (Shaner) Conners, please visit our floral store.