“Nan Cheney: Always In Our Hearts”

There is much to be said about Nan Cheney, the gentle yet invariably effective Madison activist who has died too young at age 79.

Nan was a friend of The Capital Times for many decades, and we cherished her letters to the editor, which invariably called our attention to the work that still needs to be done on behalf of peace and economic and social justice.

But we cherished even more the fact that Nan went out and did things, great things, on behalf of those causes.

In particular we admire her work with the Wisconsin Network for Peace and Justice, the coalition of activist groups and citizens of conscience statewide that for almost two decades has served as an essential coordinating force for movements to end wars and cut military spending, and to promote economic and social justice, sustainable agriculture, renewable energy, prison reform and immigrant rights.

The network does an immense amount of good work on a budget of around $60,000. The demands on it are immense, and its nonpartisan advocacy is needed now more than ever.

So let’s honor Nan Cheney in lots of ways: by celebrating her life, planting flowers, rallying for peace and justice, and doing it all in warm good spirits.

But let’s also make sure that the base Nan built remains strong by sustaining and supporting the Wisconsin Network for Peace and Justice.

(Obituary from The Cap Times)

———

From The Social Justice Center, which Nan helped found:

The Social Justice Center was established in 2000 by four local Madison nonprofits; Tenant Resource Center, Madison Community Cooperative, Wisconsin Community Fund and Wisconsin Citizen Action Fund. Their goal was to provide office space to social justice organizations and to be an incubator space where smaller start-ups can grow their organizations with affordable rent and access to all of the necessary office amenities.

Our founding organizations knew the challenges every nonprofit faces. For new organizations, the start-up costs can be overwhelming, especially without a roadmap to follow. By joining together, our founding organizations bought our building on Williamson Street to pool their resources so that more of their time and energy could be put towards achieving their missions.

Leading the charge was Nan Cheney –unstoppable community organizer, social justice activist and beloved leader in the Madison community. Her dedicated leadership during our founding campaign turned the idea of the SJC into reality. Nan’s legacy is at the heart of our story, and inspires our relentless pursuit of a more just world.