Nancy Cantwell Dix

Nancy Cantwell Dix, known to all simply as “Nan”, died peacefully on May 29, 2016, at her residence in Jacksonville. She was 88 years old. Nan was born to Nicholas Cantwell and Agnes O’Hara Cantwell in 1927 in the small steel-mill town of Roebling, New Jersey. She graduated as Valedictorian from Florence Township High School in 1944, and then attended business school to prepare for work in the Roebling Steel Company office. For seven years, Nan was one of numerous members of the extended Cantwell family who worked in the Roebling mill, but she wanted to see more of the world. She joined Eastern Airlines as a stewardess in 1953, moving first to New York City and then to Miami. There she met George Dix Jr., a pilot with Pan American World Airways, and the two married in 1956. The couple moved to Lake Mohawk, New Jersey, then returned to south Florida in 1959. They settled in Hollywood to raise their family, and became two of the founding members of Nativity Catholic Church. Both the Cantwell and Dix families loved sports, and with a house full of boys, she was a sports fan. Nan and George especially loved football and were avid supporters of the Miami Dolphins. They were married for 34 years until George’s death in 1991. Nan moved to Jacksonville in 2007 to live near her son Jim and his family, and also next door to her closest friend, Jane Mackey. She joined Holy Family Catholic Church in Jacksonville and adopted the Jaguars as her new home team. Nan took great pleasure in spending time with her family, particularly her grandchildren, and attending church with her Jacksonville friends. Nan is preceded in death by her husband, George Dix, Jr.; parents, Nicholas and Agnes O’Hara Cantwell; and brother, Nicholas Cantwell. She is survived by her sons, George III (Dolores), Bill, Michael (Jill), and Jim (Edith); by her sister, Eileen Cantwell; grandchildren, Geoffrey, Amy (Chris), Leslie, Casey (Ashley), Kaitlin, Carissa, Dayton, and Rachel; and great-grandchildren, Carter, Brady, Nakoda, Aiden, Cason, Harper, and Easton. Nan is also survived by her sister-in-law Janice Farkas Cantwell, and her children Karen, Cindy, and Michael, and their families. The Dix family sincerely thanks both Elmcroft Senior Living and Community Hospice of Northeast Florida for the kindness and care they provided to Nan in her last years. The family asks that in lieu of flowers, donations be made to Holy Family Catholic Church or to Community Hospice of Northeast Florida. Visitation will be held Sunday, June 5 from 4:00-6:00pm at Hardage-Giddens Funeral Home of Mandarin. Mass of Christian burial will be held Monday, June 6 at 11:00am at Holy Family Catholic Church, 9800 Baymeadows Rd.