In very recent weeks, I had the pleasure of chatting with Mrs. Geraldine Power, wife of the late Paul Power.
While chatting with Mrs. Power, she mentioned she had known Mrs. Nancy Camp since her childhood. She continued her conversation sharing the Thomas family and Ms. Power’s family were neighbors on adjoining farms, and logically the two families became very close, often eating meals at each other’s homes and often visiting each other via a stile that allowed the youngsters to manage the feat of ‘stepping over’ a fence with relative ease. Ms. Power also added she was amazed the Thomas family always had an extra plate for anyone visiting their home. She elaborated even more and explained the Thomas family included the parents, Mr. Shelby and Mrs. Mildred Thomas, as well as 13 children. One of those 13 children was Mrs. Nancy Carolyn Thomas Camp, the wife of the late Bobby Hall Camp and the mother of Cindy Camp Sidebottom. Sadly, on July 30, 2024, Ms. Nancy lost her life following a nine-month battle with cancer.
It is in that large family setting that many who knew Ms. Nancy will hypothesize Ms. Nancy’s love of others was nurtured from an early age. Born June 2, 1939, Ms. Nancy is remembered by so many as being an employee of Elkton Bank & Trust Company for 47 years. Mrs. Pam McGehee, president of Elkton Bank & Trust, messaged, “During her tenure of service, Ms. Nancy served as assistant cashier, head teller, and board secretary. She was a valued employee and well respected by her customers and the community she served.” Isabella Dossett, a friend of the Camp family for many years, commented, “Everyone who knew Ms. Nancy realized she was truly a most selfless and kindhearted woman.” Sue Rose, another who knew Ms. Nancy for many years, shared Ms. Nancy was a dedicated servant to our community as well as a historian who knew so very much about the places, people, and events of Elkton and Todd County.
Again, it is in that large family setting many will conjecture Ms. Nancy learned to be so altruistic, often assisting those in need with extra cash to prevent them from having insufficient funds in their checking accounts. That fact is well known to CLW since Ms. Nancy would ‘chip in’ a few dollars to assist Mom as she worked and cared for three small children. I, too, recall in my early years of teaching Ms. Nancy also ‘chipping in’ a few dollars to prevent my also overextending my checking account. (Obviously, Mom and I repaid Ms. Nancy once we knew we were awry with our funds.) I am rather confident that scenario could easily be repeated by so many who banked at Elkton Bank. Mrs. Barbara Powell, a now retired former English teacher at TCCHS, posted, “What a wonderful example of love and virtue she was.” That statement, one that speaks so powerfully, illustrates again the love Ms. Nancy had for those a part of her life.
Noting her parents had a “wonderful and devoted relationship” that included 32 years of marriage, Cindy penned for her mother’s obituary, “I only ever saw them at odds once on a July 4th over the construction of a building in our back yard. That tiff would subsequently become a funny memory through retellings over time.” Cindy also pointed out a typewriter and adding machine became common accouterments found on their dining table, and she also shared Ms. Nancy was involved in so many community activities including the Todd County Park Board as well as the PTO as Cindy trekked her way through elementary and high school. That involvement in the community led to Ms. Nancy serving as Mayor of Elkton for eight years from January 2007 to December 2014. Danny Laster, a current member of the Elkton City Council, posted on Facebook Ms. Nancy was the first person who encouraged him to run for office, a position he has now held for over 20 years.
To honor Ms. Nancy, Arthur Green issued a proclamation denoting August 2, 2024, as Mayor Nancy Camp Day. The Proclamation also states, “WHEREAS, during her time as Mayor of Elkton, Nancy adopted a new logo for the city that stated Elkton was ‘the heart of Todd County,’ which also truly symbolized her servant’s heart for Todd County and the community she truly loved and was honored to serve.” As true of any person who has lived in a community for decades, Ms. Nancy in very recent months donned her hat of historian and shared many facts about the people, places, and events that stand out in the history of Elkton. Those ‘tidbits’ have assisted many in strengthening their love for a community that now has a population of about 2230. Those ‘tidbits’ have also served to bring an awareness of the importance of history and of our need to glean as much as we can about the community we call home. For Ms. Nancy Carolyn Thomas Camp, that ‘heart of Todd County’ was her precious passion for most of her lifetime.
~ Article by Carolyn L. Wells
August 3, 2024
