Nancy Trout was a woman who loved a bad pun and a peculiar pet. She reveled in motherhood and abhorred housework. She mentored many but chartered her own course through her 80 years in Kansas City, Lawrence, Colorado Springs, and Wichita. There wasn't a joke Nancy didn't think needed to be told.

Nancy Trout died May 13, 2025, in Wichita.

Nancy Trout was born Nancy Elizabeth Long to Elizabeth (Betty) and Albert Long on November 11, 1944. Nancy grew up, the youngest of three on an idyllic street in an idyllic neighborhood in Kansas City. Albert ran Long's Hardware and Betty ran the house. They hosted their iconic annual Halloween block party, started to celebrate the end of World War II, from The Paseo.

Nancy idolized her older brother Don and followed her sister Mary to Baker University as one might. She chose the University of Kansas for graduate school to study social work and earn her master's degree. Lawrence is where she found her career, her future husband Gary, and probably herself. It was the seventies, after all.

As a social worker, she devoted her energy to helping others be their best selves with her mezzo laugh, her singsong voice, and her humor-filled truths. Husband and best friend Gary devoted his energy to her.

Together, they invented and reinvented themselves in their own unique ways. With her career in mental health and Gary working radio host gigs, and then selling, and then delivering, they never got rich. But they welcomed a daughter, which was so much better. Amanda Carroll rolled with whatever was going on and gave them their reasons for breathing. Well, Amanda and the pets—too many to name—all with their unique personalities.

They spent a few years in Green Mountain Falls, Colorado, listening to the creek behind their house and watching Amanda toddle.

Then they returned to Kansas City, living on Grand Avenue in Brookside and watching Amanda adapt and then thrive in Kansas City Public Schools. Theirs was the house that became the gathering spot for Amanda's eclectic and energetic friends. Manuel and Martha and Mollie and many others whose names didn't start with the letter "M." There wasn't a kid that Nancy didn't think needed to be listened to.

With Amanda growing up, following Nancy into social work, and marrying Micah, Nancy and Gary went all-in on one more adventure, moving to Wichita in 2009. Advocacy and education were Nancy's passions, as she helped people navigate the challenges of aging with a special effort to counsel older adults to simplify their material possessions. Gary planned to begin a new work adventure, but he was diagnosed with colon cancer on the very day they closed on their Wichita home. He died in 2012.

Nancy filled the void as best she could with pets and clients, grandson Milo and her sister Mary, who was the follower instead of the followee this time. The two sisters filled their home with animals and their yard with a flowering garden.

Nancy is survived by her daughter, Amanda Trout, son-in-law, Micah Gutweiler, and grandson, Milo. She also leaves behind her sister, Mary Long Blackwood, her brother, Donald Long,  dozens of people she helped raise, and many friends.

A time to celebrates Nancy's life will be Saturday, May 31st from 9am - 11am at Fairmount Ministries and Coffee Shop, 3815 E. 17th St. N., Wichita, KS 67208.

A memorial open house will be held Saturday, June 7, from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. at South Broadland Presbyterian Church, 7850 Holmes Rd., Kansas City, MO 64131.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Lifeline Animal Placement, a no-kill shelter in Wichita that works to find homes for peculiar, and all other, pets: lifelineanimalplacement.org

Arrangements are Affordable Cremations Plus, Wichita, Ks.