Nancy J. Klein 91 years young, known to her friends as NAN and to family as NANA, passed peacefully in her sleep on Sunday, November 28th, 2021. Nan was born February 27, 1930, in Chicago, Illinois. She was preceded in death by her adopted parents, Harry and Julia, her beloved husband of 68 years, Paul B. Klein, her sister Judy (nee Falco) and her brother Charfran. When Nan was only 5 days old, she was adopted and lovingly raised in the south shore area of Chicago. She attended Bowen High School and Culver-Stockton University in Canton, MO, where she joined and became very active in the Alpha Xi Delta Sorority. Later, Nan attended the Art Institute of Chicago, where she met and married the love of her life, Paul Klein. They married on June 23, 1951. While Paul managed his business career, Nan raised their two beautiful daughters while starting her own Art Gallery and Frame studio. A lifelong artist, teacher, and creative soul by nature, Nan ran her Petal Post Art Gallery in South Holland, Illinois for 31 years. Nan and Paul “retired” to The Villages in 2000. Never one to keep still for long, Nan continued to advance her artistic pursuits. Nan and Paul were always a great creative team and together, they were instrumental in the founding of The Villages CPPG (Color Pencil Painters Guild), as well as being members of The Villages Art League and Art Association. Nan also taught Color Pencil Drawing at The Villages Life-Long Learning Center. Her award-winning color pencil work has been displayed at many shows over the past two decades, including an exclusive exhibit at The Villages Rohan Recreation Center in 2018. Nan also had a keen interest in Genealogy and had compiled extensive family trees which now include over 2800 related persons. Nana leaves her two daughters, Paula Lee (and husband Lawrence Eby) of The Villages, FL; Corry Klein (and husband Michael Clelland) of Glasgow, UK; and her granddaughter, Lee (and husband Cary Smith) of Omaha NE. Burial will be held at Florida National Cemetery, Bushnell, FL. A Celebration of Nan’s life will be held on February 16th, 2022, at Hiers-Baxley Funeral & Cremation Life Event Center 3975 Wedgewood Lane, The Villages from 2 to 4 PM. The family respectfully requests, in lieu of flowers, donations be sent to Cornerstone Hospice of The Villages, 601 Casa Bella, The Villages, FL
