Ann Keating Nancy Chambers

Ann (“Nancy”) Keating Chambers died suddenly on November 9, 2015 at the age of 88. Nancy loved life and always had a positive attitude. She possessed exceptional intelligence and serenity and was exceedingly kind to all. Although she herself had a wonderful sense of humor, she never minded playing the “straight man” to her husband, Earl. Nancy was the daughter of Vincent Leo Keating and Mary Radel Keating and was born on August 23, 1927 in Bridgeport, Connecticut. She grew up on Toilsome Hill Road in Fairfield with her late younger brother, Vincent Radel Keating, and her older sister, Mary Keating Coogan, where they all attended public school. As a mere slip of a girl, Nancy’s lifelong passion for sports and reading was honed. When Nancy was not swimming in Long Island Sound or horseback riding, she was devouring the recently published Nancy Drew Mystery Stories. During the war years, Nancy boarded at Baldwin School in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania; following in her mother’s footsteps, she attended Smith College. A resident of Dewey House, she graduated in 1949. She spent her junior year in Geneva, Switzerland, where she pursued her major in Political Science at the University of Geneva and the International Institute. While abroad, Nancy took trips to England, France, Germany, Czechoslovakia, Belgium, Holland, and Italy. It was in the Swiss Alps that Nancy learned to ski. Nancy followed politics closely throughout her life and loved reading histories and biographies, in addition to mysteries. Her heroes included George Washington and Martin Luther King. Following college, Nancy attended Katherine Gibbs in New York and began working in the city for Pathé News as a “Girl Friday” to the Foreign News Editor. In the fall of 1949, she met her future husband, Earl Denton Chambers, on a blind date at a Yale-Dartmouth football game at the Yale Bowl; they married on September 9, 1950. Their first daughter, Sarah Ann, was born in New York City in 1953. Soon thereafter, the new family moved to Providence, Rhode Island, where their second daughter, Lydia Denton, was born in 1960. Save for brief stays in Rochester, New York and Riverside, Connecticut, and a vacation home in Green Valley, Arizona, Rhode Island was their home for over fifty years. They celebrated their 64th wedding anniversary in 2014, shortly before Earl’s death last December. Throughout Nancy’s long and active life, she immersed herself in a myriad of volunteer activities, sports, clubs, and travel. She was a volunteer and board member at Bethany Home and later became a board member at Tockwotton Home, where she worked on the planning and building of a significant addition to the home. She was a member of the Diaconate of Central Congregational Church and was an active participant in the church for many decades. Inspired by her deep faith, she pursued Bible study throughout her life. Nancy was a member of the Junior League of Rhode Island and actively supported International House. Her interests led her to join the Handicraft Club of Providence and the Garden Club. Nancy taught the family to ski, and most winter weekends were spent on the slopes. In warmer weather, she could be found playing tennis and golf. She was a member of the Agawam Hunt, the Providence Athenaeum, the University Club, Willow Dell Beach Club, the Dunes Club, and Point Judith Country Club. She enjoyed the arts, always participated in a book club wherever she lived, and was frequently found studying or playing bridge when she was not knitting sweaters, needle pointing, or making oriental rugs. She also loved to travel, and planned many trips abroad, enriching the lives of family and friends who accompanied her. Nancy is survived by her two daughters, her sons-in-law, Robert Killian and William Stusnick, her step-granddaughter, Somers Killian, and her grandsons, Hunter and Henry Stusnick. A memorial service will be held at Kingston Congregational Church, 2610 Kingstown Road, Kingston, on Wednesday, November 18, 2015, at 1:00 p.m., with a reception to follow at Point Judith Country Club, 150 Windermere Road, Narragansett. In lieu of flowers, donations may be sent to Community Preparatory School, 126 Somerset Street, Providence, RI 02907 or Saint Elizabeth Community, 1 St. Elizabeth Way, East Greenwich, RI 02818