Longtime Alaskan NOVA HEDIN SIMPSON, 88, died July 13, 2002, of natural causes at the Anchorage Pioneers' and Veterans' Home. Her ashes will be dispersed over Cook Inlet. Born in Portland, Ore., on Nov. 18, 1913, to Blanch Lenore Retherford and Newton Gustav Hedin, she was raised along the eastern slope of the Cascade Mountains. She was a member of Kappa Gamma Rho sorority at Willamette University in Salem, Ore., where she earned a B.A. in sociology and a minor in education. She met her husband, Jack Raymond Simpson, at Willamette. After graduation, she taught in a one-room schoolhouse in Maupin, Ore. After they wed, the couple moved to Denver and had three children, Gary, Erik and Mark. During World War II, Mrs. Simpson received training and volunteered as a practical nurse aide for the Red Cross. On June 30, 1952, the family moved to Anchorage. She taught as a substitute teacher and worked in administration at West Anchorage High School. Mrs. Simpson was a member of the Presbyterian Church, was an active member of the women's group Circle and participated in the fish program, which gave aid to families in need. Her family wrote: ''Nova was an irresistible, charming lady and was loved by everyone she met. She was always outgoing but never liked attention focused on her. Her family was always in the forefront of her life. She was always giving to others. ''She enjoyed camping and hunting expeditions with her family. Nova adored animals all her life. She was an accomplished pianist. She was very knowledgeable about wildflowers and she enjoyed photography.'' Mrs. Simpson was preceded in death by her husband, Jack; son, Gary; and grandson-in-law, James Winn. She is survived by her sons and daughters-in-law, Erik and Del, Mark and Andee; daughter-in-law, Jennifer Simpson; and granddaughters, Alicia, Sara and Rebecca Simpson.
(Anchorage Daily News July 16, 2002)