Nancy Elaine Freer

On Friday, July 10, 2025, Nancy Freer died peacefully in her home in Woodburn, Oregon.

Nancy was born to Alfred and Helen Seabeck on March 21, 1941, in Springfield, Illinois. When she was still in grade school, her family moved to Portland, Oregon. She later graduated from David Douglas High School, a member of the first class to attend all four years at that school.

Nancy married Richard Freer in 1963, and they raised their four children in Portland. She worked for Pacific Northwest Bell for many years and had some fun stories to tell about pranks that she and her co-workers would play on one another, as well as the long hours they worked during the Columbus Day Storm. While raising children, Nancy worked evenings in the concession stands at the Keller Auditorium, and later at the Memorial Coliseum, the Civic Stadium, Portland Meadows, and the Oregon Convention Center. She continued working banquets at the Convention Center until the Covid Pandemic closed things down in 2020, when she was 79.

All who knew Nancy recognized that she was a one-of-a-kind person who was fun-loving, creative, industrious, hard-working, persistent, and, most of all, caring, loving, and selfless.

Nancy touched many lives with her kindness, generosity, and sense of humor. She was known for stepping up to help anyone in need, even if she did not know them. She was very resourceful and knew where all the bargains were to be found. She used this skill to help friends, family and strangers get established during hard times or new beginnings.  She could turn a friend’s backyard into a wedding venue or give an old piece of furniture a new look with just a little stain and fabric. Anyone in Nancy’s circle got to enjoy her infectious laugh, as she could find the humor in any situation, and would create her own fun by playing harmless pranks or giving silly gifts.

Nancy loved her family. She enjoyed visits or phone calls from her kids and grandchildren, and kept track of their whereabouts and activities. She would pick up things that she thought people might like, and would give these gifts directly or, for fun, put them into the family White Elephant games in hopes of creating some lively competition. Nancy was always there for her family, supporting her four kids as they grew up, enjoying time with grandchildren and watching them grow,  and providing her help and presence during times of struggle or illness.

Nancy enjoyed her community, and kept track of local happenings by watching the news and by word of mouth. She was a big fan of the Star Light Parade in Portland, though she felt that they kind of ruined it by getting too formal and restricting some of the water play of the earlier years. Nancy enjoyed going outside to track the moon and watch meteor showers. When neighbors shot off holiday fireworks, Nancy shared their excitement. She really liked to see people having fun.

Nancy was an avid gardener. She spent many long hours planting and tending flowers and shrubs in her yard. She was very fond of hydrangeas with very large blooms. When Dick and Nancy moved from Beaverton to Woodburn in 2022, she moved many truckloads of plants and trees that she was transplanting to the new home.

When one of their grandsons moved to Maui, Nancy took her first airplane ride to go see him. She repeated that trip with various friends and family members and pretty soon Nancy and Richard found themselves making a yearly trip to Maui to unwind for a month or so. She was saddened by the destruction from the Lahaina fire and watched many YouTube videos to track the recovery efforts. Nancy and Richard and Cindy and Carlin made one more short trip to Maui just months before Nancy’s passing.

Nancy was preceded in death by her parents, her brothers James, Terry, Nibby and Richard, her oldest son, Kevin (Sylvia), and her grandson, Garrett Soumokil Freer. She is survived by her husband, Richard, her daughters, Cynthia Jackson (Carlin) and Laura, her son, Michael (Tina), and nine grandchildren. She is also survived by her sister, Mary Seabeck.

The funeral Mass for Nancy will be on August 8, 2025 at 11:00am at St. Luke Catholic Church in Woodburn. Mass will be followed by committal at St. Luke Cemetery and then a luncheon at St. Luke Parish Hall (Rubis Hall).