Nancy Mortimer
Nancy was born in Croydon but her family moved to Sussex while she
was still at school. As a teenager she showed promise at badminton and
reached the county mixed doubles final. She later qualified as a teacher
at Eastbourne College. There she met her first husband Terry with whom
she had two boys, Carl and Richard. They moved to Devon and Nancy
was appointed to Cockington Primary School. In her spare time she
enjoyed camping, became a Scout leader and rose to Assistant Borough
Commissioner. She retained a love of the outdoors throughout her life.
For a few years she enjoyed archery and became Devon & Cornwall
Ladies' Champion. Later after retirement she enjoyed cycling.
At school she started a chess club and asked the children to bring their
own sets. At one stage she had more than seventy playing, in the
classroom and way down the corridor! She was a gifted motivator and
her school achieved many successes in Devon, providing around fifty
players to the county teams. She started the county under nine team
and the girls' team and was an important contributor to Devon winning
the EPSCA Inter Association in 1992. In 1993 her school won the EPSCA
U9 championship and around that time she started the EPSCA England
Girls' team. Her school achievements were recognised when she
received the BCET Award, one of only three recipients in Devon. She
continued to organise the All England Girls' match and also became
involved with the Junior Squad. In 1999 she took a Girls' team to
Dresden and won a significant victory. From 2001 to 2009 she visited
thirteen countries and shared Squad victories in Florida, Poland and the
Czech Republic among others. She served for many years on the EPSCA
Committee and also became a member of the British Championship
Control Team where her persuasive skills achieved a lot of publicity in
local newspapers for Junior chess.
She passed away in a care home in Torquay after a long illness and is
survived by her partner Victor and her sons.