Nancy “Nikki” Dennison was born on December 31, 1943 in Maysville, Kentucky to William “Red” Dennison and Virginia Nichols Dennison. On September 22, 1966, she married Leonard “Buddy” Mitchell, also of Maysville and a Lieutenant in the United States Navy. Together, Buddy and Nikki had two children, Teresa Lynn in 1968 and Carolee in 1971. Nikki was a lifelong resident of Maysville until moving to Brown County, Ohio in the early 1970’s, first to Aberdeen and then to Georgetown where she reared her children and happily nested for 47 years. Upon the death of her husband in 2024, Nikki returned to Maysville to spend the last 1.5 years of her life back where her story had begun.
Nikki was known for her exceptional talents as a homemaker, using art, linens, candles, scent, and porcelain décor to create a home that was always beautiful, restful, and welcoming. Her granddaughter Suzanne Savard continues this tradition she inherited from her beloved “Grammy”. She was also a skilled cook who had zero fear of salt, fat, sugar, or heavy cream. That there were other seasonings in the world besides salt and pepper was something I am not sure she was aware of, and I grew up thinking that with just a salt and pepper shaker and a stick of butter, a woman in the kitchen could change the world. Her daughter Teresa is busy making sure this part of Nikki will never die, as she clutches her jar of bacon grease with the unholy death grip of the deranged. Nikki was not an adventurous cook or eater, but in the last months of her life, she tried sushi, Filipino food, and Indian food, for which we were all very proud.
Nikki also had a talent for friendship, and if you don’t believe me just ask Debbie Pfeffer, Phyllis Turner, and Phyllis Colliver. If you bribe them enough, they may even tell you some of the absurd shenanigans they got up to in the last 30 years together. As a reflection of her kind and empathetic heart, Nikki also maintained a robust card ministry, sending words of encouragement, comfort, and support to those in need. She has blessed many hearts with this ministry over the years.
Nikki also, astoundingly, loved to clean. She was as excited about a clean window as most people would be about winning the lottery. Sadly, this is not an attribute she appears to have passed on to her progeny. We will miss her cleaning sprees greatly.
Her other love was thrifting. If Goodwill hasn’t already called for a universal moment of silence on her behalf, they should have. Her ability to walk in a thrift store and find a designer bag, jacket, or jewelry was legendary. She also had an outsized attraction for costume jewelry and bold colors. Nikki loved and wore regularly hues that other women would wear sparingly, or not at all, such as hot pink, fuscia, turquoise, lime green, and orange. She loved big patterns and her collection of “loud” jackets was her lifelong claim to fame. In a world of “greige” wrens, Nikki was always the macaw you couldn’t look away from.
Nikki was also known for deep empathy, intuition, and “witchiness”. In her maternal line, there is an impressive and mysterious low-key clairvoyance and “mind sharing”. Women in her family don’t need words to communicate and she was particularly attuned among all of us. Many marveled at the unexplainable nature of this “knowing” but to Nikki, it was as natural as breathing. She used her awareness as a conduit for nurturing and support in ways that will never be forgotten.
Sadly, Nikki died very unexpectedly of Aspiration Pneumonia and Sepsis at Baptist Health in Lexington, KY. Upon her death, she was surrounded by family showering her with love, prayer, and gratitude for her life. Her legacy of kindness and sassiness lives on In all of us and she will be deeply and forever missed and loved.
She was predeceased by her sister Patsy Jones of Maysville, KY, her husband Buddy Mitchell of Georgetown, Ohio and her daughter Carolee Mitchell Allen of Chattanooga, TN. She is survived by her sister Mary Lou Barnes of Bedford, IN, her daughters Teresa Savard of Maysville, KY and Christie Wright of St. Albans, WV as well as 5 grandchildren and 7 great grandchildren.
Visitation will be Friday, February 13, 2026 from 1:00-3:00 pm at Moore and Parker Funeral Home in Maysville, Kentucky and the funeral service will be Saturday, February 14 at 10:00 am at the same location. Reception following funeral at a local location that will be confirmed at that time.