Nancy Matilla

A memorial service for Nancy Mattila, 77, Tucson, Ariz., will be at a later date.
Mrs. Mattila died Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2009, in Tucson.
She was born June 25, 1932, in Wallingford, Conn.
She graduated from Simmons College in Boston and was a medical secretary at Harvard University. A published author, her articles appeared in Highlights For Children, Christian Science Monitor, Harlequin and Cobblestone, among others. She was an avid reader and student of Shakespeare’s plays.
She lived in Lawrence with her husband, who was a professor of music at Kansas University. They had traveled to England, the Netherlands, France, Italy, Turkey, Greece, Egypt and the Caribbean. After retirement, they moved to Tucson in 2001.
She was a homemaker and enjoyed the ocean, gardening and viewing the ever-changing colors of the Catalina Mountains. She also enjoyed writing, knitting and weaving.
She married Edward Mattila in 1956. They shared 53 years of marriage. He survives, of the home.
Other survivors include a daughter, Amy Lara Fortney; and a son, Edward Norton Mattila.
Online condolences may be sent at vistosomemorialchapel.com/sitemaker/sites/vistos0/obit.cgi?user=135360Mattila.