Nancy Deanne (Dame) Knight

Nancy Deanne Dame Knight passed away peacefully in her residence in Holladay, UT on Monday, December 20, 2021. Nancy was a people-magnet who loved everyone she knew and made friends easily. She had a delightful, dry sense of humor and was always the life of the party. She only spoke well of others and was generous with compliments and encouragement. She was also a skilled listener. Those who knew, and loved her, will miss her dearly. 

Nancy was born to John Leroy Dame and Carol Elizabeth Cowley on July 23, 1932 in Murray, UT. She grew up in Holladay, UT where she loved to work in her father’s garden, watching things grow and bloom, and she retained this love of gardening throughout her life. She attended school at Holladay Elementary School, Olympus Junior High School and Granite High School, where she was vice president of the senior class. She graduated in 1950 and went on to attend the University of Utah, where she was very active in extracurriculars. She participated in the Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority, the service SPURS organization, and marched with the Air Force R.O.T.C. cadets as a member of the female student sponsor corps. During the summers, she worked at Bryce Canyon and in Washington, DC.  She graduated from the U of U in 1954 with a degree in Interior Design. 

It was while marching with the R.O.T.C. cadets on the parade grounds in Fort Douglas that she met her future husband, Darrell Knight. After their marriage in the Salt Lake temple in 1955, they briefly moved to Laredo, Texas for his military training and then to New York City for his graduate school. They then returned to Salt Lake City to settle down. 

She enjoyed participating in many social groups with dear friends through the years, including Daughters of the Utah Pioneers, Great Books Club, a toll painting club, a sewing club and various dinner clubs. She gave countless hours of service to family and friends, was an excellent seamstress and cook, and gifted many painted items to loved ones. She enjoyed working as a substitute at the local high school and for American Greetings part time. 

She was a faithful member of the LDS Church and served in many callings, including president of ward and stake organizations, YW Camp Director, Nursery Worker and Stake Family History Specialist with her husband. She served a mission with her husband at the U of U Institute teaching family history for eight years. And she loved serving on the board of Brighton LDS Girls’ Camp under the alias of Lady Bug. 

However, the calling she valued the most was that of a loving, supportive mother to her four children, grandmother to eleven and great grandmother to five. She is survived by her children; Norrie Knight Brassfield (Gregory), Larry joseph Knight (Macey Morgan), Karen Knight Julian (Mark) and Kristen Knight and by her brother, John Leroy Dame, Jr (Ingrid Dame). Her husband, her parents and her sister, Joan Dame Larson, preceded her in death. 

Funeral services will be held in the East Mill Creek 11th ward chapel located at 2702 E. Evergreen Ave. (3450 S). Friends are invited to visit Tuesday Dec. 28 from 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm at Holbrook Mortuary, 3251 S. 2300 E., Salt Lake City, UT and at the chapel prior to the service, from 10:00 am to 11:30 am. Interment will be in the Salt Lake City cemetery (200 N Street). Messages to the family may be shared at www.HolbrookMortuary.com. To watch the funeral via live-stream, scroll to the bottom of Nancy's obituary on the Holbrook Mortuary website on the day of the funeral.

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