Nancy Selan, born in New Jersey and a resident of Saratoga, California, passed peacefully at her apartment at Sunrise Assisted Living in Sunnyvale on May 14, 2017, following a valiant multi-year battle with cancer

Nancy was predeceased in death by her loving husband of 38 years, Sidney, and her parents, Jacob and Bobbie Bell.  She is survived by her two children, Ruth Selan of San Jose and Patti Selan of Sunnyvale, and her brother, Howard Bell of Gilroy, and his family.

Nancy came to California in the 1950's with her parents to work as a librarian at the new IBM site in San Jose.  She held a Masters' Degree in Library Science from Wayne State University and a Bachelors' Degree in Psychology from Syracuse University.  In 1964, Nancy married her beloved late husband, Sidney, and retired from IBM after her first daughter, Ruth, was born.  After her children were in high school, she pursued her paralegal degree, doing homework right along with her children, and returned to work first as a paralegal and subsequently as the Research Librarian at the United States District Court, Northern District of California, San Jose Division.  She retired after 20 years of using her paralegal skills and librarian expertise, supporting the Judges and Clerks alike in finding answers to their most challenging legal research questions.

Nancy enjoyed reading, folk dancing, and learning about new ideas and technology.  She was passionate about religion and politics, and continued to watch and comment on the news with her friends and family.

A memorial service will be held on Thursday, May 18, 2017 at 3pm at Alameda Family Funeral Home, 12341 Saratoga-Sunnyvale Road, Saratoga, California 95070, (408) 257-6262.  In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made to either Thru the Bible Radio ( http://www.ttb.org/ ) or Medical Mission Sisters ( http://www.medicalmissionsisters.org/ ) which are two charities she believed in strongly and to which she regularly donated.