It is with great sadness that the family of Nancy Reitz Rotenberry announce her peaceful passing on August 21, 2021, at the age of 88 years. She will be lovingly remembered by her husband of 67 years, Everett, and daughter Jan Spencer de Gutiérrez (Armando), as well as numerous relatives and friends. She was preceded in death by son Leigh Garland (Mary).

Nancy was born and lived in Saint Paul all her life; 64 of those years in the same home that her father built. She attended Horace Mann Elementary, Minnehaha Academy and Macalester College. She was employed at Macalester College as Assistant Alumni Director, Manager of the Dale Warland College Concert Choir and joined the faculty to teach English as a Second Language. Her love of music and the arts carried into all aspects of her life and philanthropic endeavors. Nancy sang with the Bach Society, Minnesota Chorale and Macalester Festival Chorale and was a published poet. She served on the boards of the Dale Warland Singers and The Singers – Minnesota Choral Artists. In 2015, she and her husband were honored as the first recipients of The Singers Eschweiler / Rotenberry Advocacy Award. Matthew Culloton, Founding Artistic Director and Conductor of The Singers, said “The support that Nancy, and her husband Ev, have provided has lifted me from dark places, challenged me, and billowed my sails for two decades. May she rest in the peace that she has longed for, and that she so richly deserves”. 

Nancy was a caring woman with a giving spirit. Even in her passing, Nancy chose to help others by participating in the University of Minnesota Medical School’s Anatomy Bequest Program, which supports high quality education for future health professionals and continued advancements in medical care through research.

A Celebration of Life service will take place at Weyerhaeuser Chapel, Macalester College, 1600 Grand Ave, Saint Paul, MN , October 23, at 2:00PM. A reception will follow at the Pool and Yacht Club, 1600 Lilydale Rd., Lilydale, MN. By October 8, please RSVP on this website for the service and reception.

​​Macalester expects all attendees to be fully vaccinated or obtain a negative COVID test 48 hours prior to the event; that they wear masks and stay home if they have had a known exposure within 14 days of the event or are experiencing COVID symptoms.

To view a video slideshow of photos of Nancy, please visit: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Ilz1DOPKbM8y2N1z20RzYCtui9Elfqsy/view?usp=sharing

To read more about Nancy and see her Celebration of Life service program, see: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1nuoewMZq_6XC9tgj4x3pcRWza7safS3k/view?usp=sharing

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