Here I sit, 24 years old, writing my father’s obituary on his banged-up old macbook that boasts an array of cool stickers, including the kayaker symbol he also had tattooed on his right shoulder. ‘SUSIE’ was tattooed on his opposite side. His stuff is all around me; a dad-scented sweatshirt across my lap, old photos of him with a big ol’ smile revealing his trademark diastema on the shelf to my right, his favorite headphones curled up on the table in front of me. But it’s not just his things that are here, he is here too.
Dad, we’re all going to be alright. We are at peace knowing you are now free. We miss you and love you forever and beyond.
___________________________
LOREN NANCARROW
September 27, 1953 – December 28, 2013
Loren Alan Nancarrow, longtime San Diego TV icon, organic gardener and conservationist, passed away Saturday, December 28, 2013 at the age of 60, following a courageous 11 month battle with brain cancer. Loren is survived by his wife, Susie, their son (Graham, 25) and their two daughters (Hannah, 24 and Britta, 20) and the love of an entire city. To his family, his friends and to the San Diegans that love him, he was larger than life.
Loren was a renaissance man, a guys’ guy who was as similar to Bear Grylls, as he was to Martha Stewart. A man who loved getting his hands dirty, as much as he loved arranging a centerpiece. He liked making homemade peanut butter and candles, vanilla extract, beef stroganoff…and did I mention centerpieces?
My dad was a kayaker, an organic gardening guru and a lover of wonderment. He enjoyed Bob Dylan, Jack Daniel’s and hot sake and was an avid collector of walking sticks, beach glass and beautiful german shepherds. My dad knew everything there was to know about citrus trees and roses and tomatoes, raising chickens and earthworms and monarch butterflies. He was a human Pinterest board.
Loren Nancarrow will be remembered as liberal but openminded, firm but kind, intellectual but hysterical. And he won’t mind me saying, he was a quiet but strong supporter of medical marijuana.
He was proud to be San Diego’s Organic Son.
We love you wonderful dad, husband, friend and hero: You are not gone, just gone ahead.
___________________________
And you, dear friends, we love you and are forever grateful to you. With everything we have, thank you. I’ll leave you with the quote my dad lived by over these past 11 months:
“Life should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside in a cloud of smoke, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming ‘Wow! What a Ride!’”
― Hunter S. Thompson
Hannah Jane Nancarrow (your “Hammer Jane”)
Please join us in celebration of Loren Nancarrow’s life…
Monday, December 30th, 2013 @ 4pm
Seaside Reef — Cardiff, California
**Please bring a SUP, kayak, surfboard, towel or beach chair and a candle to light for Loren**
Loren Nancarrow, April 2013
Photo taken by Loren at Torrey Pines, January 2009
Hannah Jane Nancarrow is a San Diego State University alumni, with a B.A. in journalism and new media. After graduating in 2011, Hannah worked in local T.V. news before her dad was diagnosed with terminal brain cancer. Hannah managed and contributed to her dad’s incredibly popular blog (thenancarrowproject.com) and social media platforms before he passed away, after 11 months of bravely battling and blogging. The diagnosis was a catalyst for her own writing and for following each whim and dream. Today, Hannah writes her own blog and has been a keynote speaker at San Diego Women's Week, Relay for Life, and a top fundraiser for cancer-related causes throughout San Diego. Hannah also has a passion for health and fitness, since losing 75 pounds in 2011. She earned her Spinning® and group fitness instructor certifications, and teaches weekly cycle classes in Encinitas, California. Hannah also earned her real estate license and works in the family business, Nancarrow Realty Group, in North County San Diego.
The Nancarrow Project 
Right on Hannah! Great job, See you tomorrow, you too Lauren!!
Our little boy, Todd, had to watch the news each evening to see what the weather would be as your Dad forecasted it for all of us for so many years.(one time your Dad was doing a live broadcast on location near our home, so naturally we hurried down to see the next hour’s broadcast, and thenTodd would be able to see his hero. Your Dad was great, acknowledging Todd and taking the time to chat with him for a bit.) Now that little boy is a grown man, but your Father is still remembered tenderly by all of us. Could we all be so blessed to have impacted so many as your Dad did in his lifetime.
Even though I didn’t personally know him, after many years of watching him on TV, I feel as if I did. I can only imagine the depth of your loss. Peace and comfort to you and your family.
Beautifully stated!
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Oh Hannah! I know how you feel, sitting with your dad’s shirt in your lap! I’m so sorry you lost him so soon. You obviously have an amazing family, so I know you will all support each other, and I know from reading your dad’s blogging, how terribly proud of all of you he was. I’m glad you all had time to love each other into good bye.
Wonderful words Hannah, fits your dad to a T. Loren taught us so many things over the years. He made us gardeners pay attention to organics and the hazards of sprays. He told us that when you put bad things in the ground, like to get rid of ants, it gets rid of all the good things too. He was a very fun loving, caring man who loved his family most of all and will be missed by everyone he knew and those of us who feel we knew him, until we all meet again. God love you all.
If I still lived in San Diego I would join the celebration tomorrow. Instead I will light a candle in his honor and memory at 4pm and send my love and prayers from Newport, Oregon.
My sympathies to you and your family. I worked with him years ago at KFMB. He was always so nice and friendly.
I think of him when I look at my poinsettias… he always would explain how to care for them after Christmas so they would bloom again…
I’ll miss his friendly face on TV.
The journey never ends! You have shown us what sliding home is all about! Your fathers your angel now. Stay strong Hannah
May god bless you and your family. Your Dad was an inspirations to all of San Diego, he will truly be missed by everyone.
Everyone I know who loves San Diego and the North County love Loren
Your father was an amazing men. He has left behind a legacy and a incredible compassionate daughter to continue his passion. May the peace of God be with you, your sister and brother and most of all your mother. He truly was a knowledgeable person and I will miss his tips/segments he has given to all of us.
Hannah, We are going to miss your father. He was a friend of mine way back at KFMB. When he use to do the weather, I realized that he had something very special. When he ha gone up to San Francisco and did reports of the earthquake during the Worl Series, everyone in the nation came to know your dad as someone that not only knew the weather, but also knew how to do “real news” but also had the knack for gardening and knew what he was talking about.
I came to know and love his humor, his love for music and his love for you kids and your dear mother Susie.
We loved your father, and we all want to thank your family for sharing him with all of us. His real love was you guys. For that, we are all grateful. He and your mother shaped your family to who you guys are today. Stay strong. Help your mom, your brother and your sister. You have the best. Your father is in heaven watching your family and is so very proud of you.
That’s beautiful, Hannah. I’m sure your Dad was watching over your shoulder as you wrote these wonderful words about a man who touched so many lives in so many ways. He will never be forgotten. I remembered something last night that made me laugh through this. Remember when you guys had that peeping Tom looking in the windows? Your Dad was going to get that guy looking in at his girls. He cracked me up, sitting on the porch in wait for the guys return. He was Dad mad, but there was that Loren humor in it. You will miss him every day of your life. My Dad has been gone 20 years, and still the phone rings and I think it’s him. But, I know he is here with me, like Loren will always be with you all. I will never forget all the things I learned from him through all these years. He was an original. Love to you all.
My heart is breaking and my tears well up as I think of your father’s journey. It was the same journey that my wonderful husband made just a short while ago. My Bill only had 11 months from the time of his diagnosis and passed away on June 16, 2013, but the hemorrhage that occurred on July 28, 2012 took away some of his ability to express himself in depth. Loren’s words helped me to think how Bill might have expressed himself because he was also another altogether wonderful person like Loren. My deepest sympathy to you and your family. May we someday see a cure for this dreadful disease. Sincerely, Helen Stratton
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He touched many lives. You are all in our thoughts and prayers.
Lovely words to honor your dad. I still have the bottle from the homemade Vanilla extract Loren gifted me when we worked together. Loren’s light shines on. My thoughts and prayers to you and your family.
My “Prayer of Saint Francis” for Loren – I met you once and it lightened and enlightened the rest of my life. We are so blessed to have you visit. God bless you and your family.
Lord, make me an instrument of Your peace;
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
Where there is injury, pardon;
Where there is error, truth;
Where there is doubt, faith;
Where there is despair, hope;
Where there is darkness, light;
And where there is sadness, joy.
O Divine Master, Grant that I may not so much seek
To be consoled as to console;
To be understood as to understand;
To be loved as to love.
For it is in giving that we receive;
It is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
And it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.
I will meet your loving family tomorrow as we all honor you Loren, lighting a candle for you and sendng a balloon with a message to heaven, your new home.
GOD can use an awesome composter I’m sure you will be tossing feathers to those you love too. and pennies from heaven…throw quarters LOL!
So long Loren it was my pleasure to follow you for over 25 years and know you from afar.
you are FREE now.
Love you my friend, Bj Ross
God Bless Loren and his family always. I am surrounding his family and close friends in prayer and support at this very difficult time, since Loren’s passing on Saturday. Loren is a great man in so many ways, as he made a positive difference for many of us. He shared with me wonderful moments of light and laughter! I was so glad and fortunate to have met him personally at a Wags For Wishes Event at the Del Mar Polo Fields. Thank you, Loren for everything great in your lifetime.
Whst a beautiful obituary. I too, lost my Dad in 2009 after a 9 month battle with lung cancer and wrote his obituary. It was not easy but I relived all the wonderful things about him. Your Dad lived a wonderful and happy life filled with love. He will remain in our hearts and forever remembered.
Good guy. Courageous fight. Enjoyed his Blog, very sorry for those he leaves behind. God bless.
Beautifully written! Your dad is so proud of you and all the family. May your link stay strong.
You did a great job Hannah, writing about your dad. He was a kind, wonderful man. And the quote he used for the past 11 months, was really HIM. Thank you for sharing your dad with all of us, here in the public world! We loved him!!
Wow Hannah you are the most amazing writer. God Bless you all what an amazing Father.
Sail on Loren! We’ll see you in every rosebush and every sunset over the sea.
We are very sorry but hope that good comes from this…Pray for a cure…Rest in Peace
a beautiful family..
May are thoughts and prayers be with your family. By the looks of those that surrounded him he was an individual that loved life, loved his job, but most of all loved his family. San Diego truly lost one of it’s finest, but in the hearts of many Loren will never be forgotten. That smile lit up a room I’m sure, and in the hearts of many San Diegans as well. Thank you Loren for filling us with knowledge on how to care for the world we live in, but more importantly how to care for each other. May you be at peace and let your light shine on those you loved.
Such a beautiful tribute to your father. He will be missed by all of San Diego.
You are awesome Hannah. Just like your daddy!
Loren and your family have been an inspiration to many. Our thoughts and prayers are with you.
San Diego has lost a hero. I have found inspiration from the blog posts throughout his illness. His courage and determination to fight the disease and finally the grace with which he accepted the final outcome brought tears and then a smile.
Bill Toone send me an email this morning with the news and I have been thinking about it all day. We are in Flagstaff this week so I will get a view of the sunset tomorrow and light a candle. Our thoughts and prayers are with your family.
Fred & Kathy
Beautifully written Hannah – our family didn’t know yours personally, but I grew up watching your dad on the news and we have been captivated by his courageous fight. He inspired so many before his cancer, even more so during his fight, and his memory and cause will live on. Our prayers and thoughts are with your family as you transition to a new normal. Gone too soon, the world was better because of him.
My heart has been heavy all day… I thank the Lord for blessing America’s Finest City with such a wonderful soul.
Thanks Loren! {{ ❤ }}
“Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.”
Emerson~
Loren Nancarrow left a beautiful trail. May your memories encourage and comfort you.
God Bless you Hannah, Susie, Graham, and Britta. Your father and husband will be missed by so many people who he touched. Peace be with you.
So very beautifully said Hannah~
No words for the loss, yours and ours…Even those of us that only knew your dad through the tv. Thank you for sharing this beautiful soul with us in life and as his life closed.
I know that heaven is happy to have their angel back…I agree, he isn’t gone, just gone ahead….til we meet again…♥
Hannah: You are something else. Your bravery in the face of such adversity is to be honored. May you and your family find the peace Loren wants for you and know that he will always be watching out for you from above. RIP Loren,
Beautifully written Hannah! My deepest condolences to you and your family. Your Dad was part of all our lives for so many years and I thank you all for sharing him with us.
sorry for your loss he was a wonderful man who will be sadly missed. my father also had a battle with cancer this year and its the hardest thing to see them go through especially to such strong men.Just remind your self that he is now pain free enjoying a wonderful after life.
So sorry for your family’s loss, San Diego’s loss… your father was a great man. That is my life’s motto as well.
Just beautiful Hannah!
Loren was/is an amazing Man, who will be greatly missed. I will miss his blogs as I miss him on tv. God Bless his wonderful family. R.I.P Loren you have deserved to have peace and rest. Love Always Linda
I am so sad about Loren’s passing, praying for his family and friends for comfort and peace.
I am sitting here crying by this entry. Your dad was so amazing and such a vibrant person and it was such a shock to read of his passing. But I know he is free and is sailing in the beautiful sky with no more pain.
I will be in Cardiff in spirit….my fingers are sporting a awesome blue color it’s never seen. And I will light a candle when I get home.
You and your family has been so amazing during this time. I am in awe of you Hannah how you dealt with this. Your entries have been so moving. You will be in my prayers
Beautiful Hannah. Your Dad was beloved by so many.
What a beautiful obituary. God bless your family and may you all be comforted.
Praying for Peace and Strength for You and your Family..Gods Bless