Nancy J. Braden

Nancy Braden, who passed away on October 14, 2022 was born Nancy Jean Nesbit, February 18, 1935, in Detroit, the daughter of Gene and Beth Nesbit.  She grew up in northwest Detroit and graduated from Mackenzie High School.  An early marriage to H. Ward Keith produced her four children:  David Ward Keith, Susan Elizabeth Cook, Patricia Jean Byler (Richard), and Barbara Ann Underwood (Edward).

After a move to Plymouth, Michigan, and widowed at 29, Nancy furthered her education at Schoolcraft College and Eastern Michigan University.  From Eastern, she graduated Magna Cum Laude with a B.A. degree and later earned a Master of Arts degree.  She was hired as an elementary teacher in the Plymouth/Canton school system and taught third and fourth grades at Edna Allen Elementary for 24 years.  Her classroom children were among the joys of her life.  A second marriage to Robert J. Braden saw her retirement from teaching and ended with his death in 2002.

Nancy loved the beauty of the outdoors, to read, and to attend plays and films.  She delighted in travel.  She climbed the Great Wall of China, sailed over the Rio Grande in a hot air balloon, toured Ireland and all the U.K., declaring London her favorite city.  She visited the Maritime Provinces, the Baja Peninsula, Alaska (twice) and sailed down the Danube. She also visited sixteen major U.S. cities with Robert’s World War II Reunion Group.  Travel highlights for Nancy, though, were when she made her frequent visits to her families and grandchildren who have settled outside of Michigan - Ryan, Laura and Dan Cook who grew up in Tucson, AZ; Nicholas and Nathan Underwood in Hawaii; and Richard and Jessica Byler in Jackson, MI.  Son David resides in Plymouth.  There are also four honorary great-grandchildren from the Braden Family, Samantha, Laurel, Abel and Asher Braden.

Of paramount interest to Nancy were her dear family and friends.  Her sister, Mary Bain (life-partner Art Bull), her son and three daughters along with two sons-in-law, her seven grandchildren and four great-grandchildren were the treasured people in her life.  Among her many loving friends were several she had known for over fifty years, and two were from her school days.

Nancy was an active and long-time member (since 1972) of First United Methodist Church of Plymouth, where she volunteered in many areas.  She was a member of Plymouth Woman’s Club and served as a greeter, docent and archivist at the Plymouth Historical Museum and was a member of the Plymouth Historical Society.

There’s to be visitation for friends and family at the Schrader-Howell Funeral Home 280 South Main St, Plymouth on Friday, October 21^st from 4:30pm to 7:00pm. Visitation is also offered at her church, First United Methodist Church 45201 North Territorial Rd, Plymouth at 10:00 Saturday, October 22^nd  followed by a 11:00 Memorial Service to celebrate her lovely life, with a luncheon to follow in the church Fellowship Hall.  In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to her church for the use of maintenance of the church Memorial Garden where her ashes are to be interred, or to the charity of your choice.