Nancy Jo Hiar Obituary
It is with great sadness that the family of Nancy Jo Hiar announces her passing on May 26, 2019. She died after a long struggle with Early Onset Alzheimer’s at the age of 60 years old.
Nancy Jo was preceded in death by her father Clifford. She is survived by her mother Alice, her sister Pam, brothers Brad (Leslie) and Todd (Tammy). She will be fondly remembered by her nephews, Ross and Aaron and nieces Brielle and Sydney Jo.
Nancy Jo Hiar was born to Clifford and Alice Hiar in Robbinsdale Minnesota and was raised in Crystal, Minnesota. She graduated from Cooper High School and was attending a trade school when an opportunity of a lifetime came her way. She escaped the cold Minnesota winter with two friends, wanting to sail around the Caribbean with one catch, none of them knew how to sail. They found a fourth person who did and they set off island hopping and learning how to sail. After the trip she came to California to visit her sister and she made the state her new home.
Her first job upon arrival was working for an interior plant service but she quickly started her own landscaping business called Terra Designs. She had numerous clients, all in San Francisco for over 30 years and worked up until her disease forced her to resign.
Nancy Jo was a longtime resident of Napa. She enjoyed hiking the Napa hills, traveling as well as enjoying great food and wine. Her profession carried over to her own homes with her creating amazing gardens with a partiality to succulents. She was extremely creative making her own paper using items from her garden. She then created handmade paper shades and lamps that she sold at various stores. She took pleasure in going to estate sales and flea markets to find vintage items for her collections, which grew into a shared business with her sister called “At Home In Napa.” For many years the flexibility of her work allowed her to volunteer for Meals on Wheels delivering food to the elders in Napa.
Nancy Jo agreed to be part of a study at the University of California San Francisco once it was discovered that she had Alzheimer’s. This included extensive testing in person and she decided to donate her organs for further study of this horrific disease hoping that it might, in some way, help find a cure. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to UCSF to continue their study on Alzheimer’s at
https://giving.ucsf.edu
Per her wishes Nancy Jo will be cremated and no formal church services will be held. A memorial mass will be said in her honor, in Rancho Cordova at a later time.
