Roxanne “Nancy” Anton, of Niles
June 7, 1930 — June 27, 2019
Niles Daily Star, Published 10:39 am Monday, July 1, 2019
June 7, 1930 — June 27, 2019
Roxanne “Nancy” Anton, 89, of Niles, passed away peacefully at 2:30 a.m. on Thursday, June 27, 2019, at Riveridge Manor in Niles following an extended illness.
She was born on June 7, 1930, in Somerset Center, Michigan, to William Thomas and Ethel Lucille (Fitch) Ossmer.
She was graduated from Niles High School and earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Saint Mary’s College in Notre Dame, Indiana. She was employed as a customer service manager in the offices of the Xerox Corporation.
Nancy was a member of the First Presbyterian Church in Niles while a young mother, but later joined her sisters at the First Baptist Church in Niles. She was a creative cook of the wild game that her husband would bring home, and combined those skills with her interest in creative writing to publish an article in Field & Stream magazine titled “From the Field to the Table.” More recently, she has published a collection of stories from her life in a book titled “Windows in Time.” Her greatest interest was her family, with a long history of caring for relatives during times of need and crisis, and a great love for her husband, for their children, and — perhaps most importantly — for their grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
On Sept. 30, 1950, at The Cathedral of Saint James in South Bend, Indiana, she married Robert Gerald Anton. Bob “the barber” maintained a barber shop at 118 N. Third Street in Niles for many years. They celebrated last year the remarkable 68th anniversary of their wedding.
Nancy was preceded in death by her parents, and by her siblings, Barbara Taylor, Sarah A. “Sally” Remus, David Ossmer, Daniel Dudley Ossmer, William Thomas Ossmer, and Margaret “Maggie” Gillette.
Surviving family includes her husband, Bob and their children, Julia (Reynold) Anton Wiggins of Half Moon Bay, California, and Gerald R. (Pam) Anton, of Niles; grandchildren Amy (David) Lueders, Robert (fiancee, Mollie O’Blenis) Anton, and Patricia Anton; great-grandchildren, Grayson and Madelyn; and Nancy’s brother-in-law, James Gillette, of Niles; and many nieces and nephews.
The funeral service for Nancy Anton will be at noon on Wednesday, July 3, 2019, at the First Baptist Church, 1446 E. Main St. in Niles with Pastor Jim Wing of Niles officiating. Committal will follow at the Silverbrook Cemetery in Niles.
The family will receive relatives and friends at the church beginning at 10 a.m. on Wednesday. Contributions in memory of Nancy may be made to the First Baptist Church, fbconnection.org/~fbcniles; or to the Alzheimer’s Association, 225 N. Michigan Ave., Floor 17, Chicago, IL, 60601, alz.org. Arrangements were made at the Halbritter-Wickens Funeral Home, 615 E. Main Street in Niles. Online condolences may be left at: halbritterwickens.com.