Nova Nada Comfort was born in Huntington, Ind., on June 29, 1910, to Jacob and Myrtle Arnold. Her parents divorced when she was quite young. After the divorce, her older brother stayed with his father and Nova lived with her mother who did washings and cleaning as a livelihood. Even though she worked long days, she managed to teach Nova to cook, sew and play the piano. Nova and her mother moved several times as she was growing up, living for some time in Ohio and finally settling in Tecumseh, Mich. Because of the divorce of her parents and moving, she failed two grades, but when she graduated from Tecumseh High School, she was valedictorian of her class. She kept the outline of her speech all during her lifetime.

Nova and her mother began attending the Friends Church (Quaker) where she played the piano for the Sunday school. She found that she enjoyed their worship service. She also enjoyed her Sunday school class taught by Russell Comfort, a nice looking young farmer. He was 12 years older than she was but they became interested in each other and began dating. Eventually they were married on July 17, 1931. On Aug. 16, 1932, twin girls were born. They named them Norma Jean and Marian Irene. When the twins were about 2 years old, the family moved into a newly renovated house just outside the city of Tecumseh. This was Nova’s home for more than 70 years. Three sons were also born, but one was stillborn.

After Nova’s husband, Russell Comfort, passed away in 1970, she lived alone in the house they had shared. In May of this year, Nova was nearing her 97th birthday and her health was failing rapidly. There was no family member to provide adequate health care for her. Marian, one of her twin daughters, had served with her husband, Dale, as missionaries for over 50 years in Nigeria, Indonesia, Manila, Republic of Mongolia and Ukraine. They were semi-retired and living in Oak Harbor. Finding her mother in such difficult circumstances, they brought her on an “impossible journey” to spend the rest of her life with them in their home on Taylor Road. However, “the rest of her life” was relatively short for despite their loving care assisted by visiting nurses from Home Health Care and Hospice of Whidbey General Hospital in Coupeville, Nova passed on to her heavenly home on Aug. 2, 2007.

The final interment will be in Raisin Valley Cemetery near Adrian, Mich., beside her husband. Her youngest son, Paul Comfort, passed away in 2005. She is survived by her twin daughters, Norma Jean (Comfort) Campbell of Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, and Marian Irene (Comfort) Neff of Oak Harbor. Also surviving her is her son, Albert Comfort of Tecumseh; 13 grandchildren, 17 great grandchildren, and one great great-granddaughter. At 97, she had outlived all of her other relatives as well as those of her church and her neighbors. Her life was not only long but well-lived. She left behind a good example for others to follow because she followed her Savior. Her testimony was, “Jesus led me all the way!”