Nancy Gail Lewis

WEAVERVILLE - Nancy Gail Lewis, age 88, of Weaverville passed away on Friday, March 27, 2026. Nancy was born on July 6, 1937, in Perth Amboy, New Jersey, the first child of Harman and Julia Fullmer. She met her husband Ralph, the love of her life, in Brooklyn Heights, NY, and they were married 3 months later. Though for each of them it was a second marriage, they were married for 54 years until Ralph’s death in 2019.

She is survived by her much-loved daughters and “sons”, Rebecca Alexander and Graham Disque of Johnson City, Tennessee, and Rachael and David Ide, of Biltmore Lake; and by her beloved grandsons, Jonathan and Daniel Alexander, and Matthew and Ethan Ide and their lovely wives Kendall and Julianne. She is also survived by two sisters and a brother. After leaving Brooklyn Heights, she and Ralph moved to New England, living in Salem, Newburyport and West Newbury, Massachusetts, and in Craftsbury Common, Vermont, before retiring to Asheville and Weaverville.

Though she worked in the advertising department for Nations Business magazine as merchandising manager while she lived in NYC, most of Nancy’s professional life was spent as an English professor and Director of the Honors Program at North Shore Community College in Danvers and Lynn, Massachusetts. The Honors Program, which she developed, gave qualifying liberal arts community college students an accelerated curriculum, enriching cultural experiences, and the opportunity to transfer to esteemed four-year colleges. Many of these students went on to change the trajectories of their lives, becoming pharmacists, teachers, directors of social agencies and physicians. In 1993, she was awarded the NISOD Award for Teaching Excellence by the University of Texas, Austin. She was also awarded several Citations for Outstanding Performance by North Shore Community College where she retired as Professor Emeritus. Throughout her professional career, she also edited numerous books and articles.

After she and Ralph retired to the Asheville area in 1996, she taught literature courses at what is now known as the OLLI Learning Center at UNCA and at the McCall Lifelong Learning Program in Black Mountain. She also chaired the Curriculum Committee for three years at the College for Seniors at OLLI. She taught Road Scholar literature courses at the Craftsbury Sports Center in Craftsbury, VT, and at the Montreat Conference Center. She served on the boards of SART and the Friends of the Weaverville Library and belonged to several book groups. She was a member of Grace Episcopal Church.

Contributions in her memory may be sent to Asheville’s Grace Episcopal Church, 871 Merrimon Ave., Asheville, NC 28804 or the Weaverville NC Library, 41 N. Main St., Weaverville, NC 28787.

West Family Funeral Services is honored to be serving Nancy’s family. Condolences may be offered to the family under her obituary at www.westfamilyfuneralservices.com.