Nancy Lee Fowlkes

Cottage Grove - Nancy Lee Fowlkes, 76, of Cottage Grove, died on Sept. 25, 2010. Nancy was born Nov. 20, 1933, the daughter of Agatha Karlen Fowlkes and Professor John Guy Fowlkes.   She earned a bachelor's degree in Asian studies and a master's degree in education from the University of Wisconsin where she also proved herself an accomplished and talented young actress.   While Nancy spent most of her life in the Madison, Wisconsin area, she lived briefly in India in the 1950s and lived and worked in New York City for a period in the 1960s.   She maintained her interest in theatre throughout her life and belonged to the Madison chapter of the Phi Beta fraternal organization for people in the performing and creative arts. She had acting roles in productions at the Green Ram Theatre in Baraboo and was involved in several other theatrical endeavors. In 1997, she directed Phi Beta members in Thornton Wilder's one-act play ""Long Christmas Dinner"" in performances at the First Congregational Church on the 100th anniversary of the playwright's birth.   Nancy also loved to write and, in 1994, published books about her parents.   She also wrote numerous other stories which she shared with friends and family. She was a devoted Christian woman who also was interested in Eastern religions.   She is survived by her nephew, Robert F. Blodgett of Florida; and two first cousins, Karen Karlen Dunn and Delmar Karlen, both of New York.   A service for her will be held at 11 a.m. on Thursday, September 30 in the chapel at SUNSET MEMORY GARDENS, 7302 Mineral Point Road, Madison.   In lieu of flowers, donations in her memory may be made to the First Congregational Church of Madison, the Dane County Humane Society, or the International Rescue Committee.