A woman killed in a fire on Saturday along with her pets will be remembered by her family for her sense of humor and her love of animals.
Nancy Lynn Sarama, 66, died in a house fire in midtown Tucson, with her chihuahua, Max, and her cat.
Firefighters responded to the 1800 block of North Belvedere Avenue, near East Pima Street and North Swan Road, around 8 a.m., where they found Sarama inside the front door, the Tucson Fire Department said in a news release.
Her niece, Janet Cappiello, said Sarama loved animals, especially stray animals, which she would often take in and feed.
“I’m sure she was more concerned about getting her dog and cat out of that fire than herself,” Cappiello said. “We are comforted to know she went to the other side with her beloved pets.”
Sarama was a retired freelance illustrator, often working with nonprofits, Cappiello said.
She illustrated a few children’s books about emotional intelligence working with Lynne Namka, a Tucson psychologist and author.
She is survived by her two nieces, who say their aunt had a great sense of humor and was the kind of person who preferred to sit at the kids table and play games with the children.
When Cappiello was 12 years old, Sarama, then 22, took her to her first concert, Elton John at Madison Square Garden in New York City, making Cappiello a lifelong fan of the musician, she said.
Sarama would often send her nieces and their families quirky gifts, even if it wasn’t someone’s birthday or a holiday, they said.
Her niece Beverly Foster remembers getting an ornament of a pickle wearing a Santa hat one year.
Sarama would also use photos of her family and draw the image on a shirt as a gift.
“When it came to presents, you never knew what you were going to get,” Foster said.
Cappiello said she would often come home to find boxes from Sarama in the mail. Each box was filled with random stuff, from cards Sarama drew to books, toys and fake cockroaches meant to scare someone, Cappiello said.
Foster and Cappiello said they’ll miss Sarama’s sense of humor most.
“She always had something funny to say,” Cappiello said. “Even in bad times.”
Funeral services were still being arranged.
