Nancy Toothman

Nancy Cheryl Toothman, an accomplished artist, activist and genealogist, died at her home in Mannington, WV on Nov. 23. Nancy was a free-lance graphic artist and web designer as well as former creative director of a promotional products company in Morehead City, NC, where she lived before moving to Marion County in 2010. A proud seventh generation West Virginian, Nancy was born in Fairmont on Nov. 3, 1945. She was the daughter of Fairmont native Byron Rimbey Toothman, who passed away in 1961; and the late Maxine Slider Toothman of Morehead City, NC. She was also the granddaughter of the late Leroy Hunter Slider and Mildred Welch Slider of Kingwood, WV; and the late Homer “Sandy” Toothman and Lyle Rimbey Toothman of Fairmont, WV.

Nancy is survived by two daughters, Alice Lyle Schmitt (Eddie Fabian) of Ventura, CA and Melissa Cheryl Barletta (Mike) of Las Vegas, NV; three grandchildren, Hunter, Bryce and Sophia, all of Ventura; a sister Sandee Lee Holland (Herb) and a brother Byron Rimbey Toothman (Diane), all of Wilmington, NC.

After graduating from high school in Alexandria, VA and attending West Virginia University, Nancy and her former husband Rodney Schmitt moved to Georgia and later to California, where she earned a B.A. from State Jose State University and an M.A. from UCLA. While still in high school, Nancy was commissioned by a U.S. Senate investigative committee to create a detailed, two-dimensional likeness of the Seal of the United States, which once hung in the American Embassy in Moscow. Her freehand pen-and-ink copy of the plaque was exhibited at a Senate hearing to show the location of a “bug” embedded in the plaque by Soviet spies when the embassy was under construction.

Later in life, Nancy provided hand-drawn illustrations for a number of art catalogs and scholarly publications, including The Essential Gourd: Art and History in Northeastern Nigeria. Work on that book piqued her interest in gourds and led her to develop gourd-crafting skills of her own. In the 1990s, she carved, painted and pyro-engraved gourds that took prizes at regional and national art shows; two of her pieces appeared in The Complete Book of Gourd Art. Nancy was, however, far better known for the award-winning mixed media collages she created during her years in Morehead City and Mannington.

As a political activist, Nancy participated in numerous marches and rallies promoting peace, environmental protection and social justice. Not surprisingly, those themes informed many of her collages, which often incorporated found objects and paper she made by hand. Because she was obliged by conscience to do her part in preserving the earth’s finite resources, Nancy recycled weathered pallets and fallen fence pickets to make the frames for her collages. She also restored and embellished discarded commercial frames for artwork celebrating her love of reading, animals (especially dogs) and her West Virginia heritage. For many years, Nancy designed elaborate pendants and earrings made from wood-burned gourd shards or repurposed costume jewelry. She also conducted genealogical research, tracing branches of her family tree to 16th century Scotland and Western Europe. When her health and mobility began to decline, Nancy returned to jewelry crafting and genealogy. She also worked on a series of joyful collages that featured some of the small churches dotting Marion County’s countryside.

For those who may wish to honor Nancy’s memory, the family suggests donations be made to Woodlawn Cemetery restoration efforts in care of Nancy Bickerstaff, president, Historic Woodlawn Cemetery (P.O. Box 765, Fairmont, WV 26555) or Mandy Steele, treasurer of the GFWC Woman’s Club of Fairmont (300 First St., Fairmont, WV 26554).