Nancy Dolan-Brady

Executive Recruiter for the marketing profession Nancy Dolan Brady of New Wilmington, PA, formerly a long-time resident of Pittsburgh, passed away on March 7, 2022 from cancer.

For more than a decade she endured multiple cancers and brain surgery. Throughout it all Nancy, long known by the initials NDB, demonstrated great courage and resilience despite intense pain, debilitating side effects and exhaustion. 

She was unafraid to share in writing and photos the saga of her aggressive treatment presented in her unique voice and unremitting honesty.

And her wit. Nancy said that a good quote for her obituary would be this: “I don’t care what is written about me so long as it isn’t true.”—Dorothy Parker

In one narrative, she urged us to “Take a moment from the minutia of daily ‘living’ and direct attention to the ‘here and now’ to express what is deep in your heart, and pay attention/cherish the response while there is the opportunity to do so.”

Nancy was born in Van Nuys, CA, grew up in Long Beach, NY, and at age 16 enrolled at Carnegie-Mellon University in Pittsburgh, where she earned her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in 1976.

In the first phase of her career she applied her creative talent to the broadcasting and advertising field winning 32 awards of excellence including TV commercial Best of Show from the Pittsburgh Radio & Television Association.

She then found a home in the advertising world as Field Account Executive for the Pittsburgh Recruiting Battalion on behalf of the U.S Army Recruiting Command account at the N.W. Ayer agency.

In 1987  at the Army client’s recommendation she joined the newly-appointed agency Young & Rubicam as Field Account Managing Supervisor of the nationwide field force of 17 staff.  

Her work garnered rave reviews from Y&R’s Executive Vice President and the U.S. Army Generals who headed Recruiting Command.

In 1995 she founded the executive search and recruitment firm NDB Associates which served more than 50 companies including M&M Mars, Citibank, DuPont, Honeywell, Microsoft, Leo Burnett, McCann Erickson, and Young & Rubicam.

Nancy wrote in 2011 for the university publication Carnegie-Mellon Today: “As a recruiter, I would come across the misery of broken dreams from the unemployed who reached out to me, many outside my specialty. I found myself wishing I could raise a magic wand to transform them back into the workforce. Through coaching, I began to do so. I'm the Fairy Job Mother, helping people get back to work.”

Nancy’s many corporate and individual clients and professional colleagues became friends.

 * “I can’t think of anyone else who combines her smarts, her beauty, her enthusiasm, her tenacity, her humor, her welcoming heart for friends and strangers, her kindness, her generosity, her blend of talent for business and the arts.”

*“She approaches life with such a creative flair in everything she does – her work, her cooking, her flowers, her art.”

 *“Friendly, genuine, and patient are the unique strengths that make her so special to all of us. You can just have an easy conversation with her at the drop of a hat. She’s the real deal. I don’t think she could have been as successful as she has been as a recruiter without a big dose of patience.”

 *“She is optimistic and never gives up.”

  * “If you are Nancy’s friend she will have your back — always.”

During her last round of cancer treatment Nancy said, “I’m no stronger than anyone else. My friends give me the strength to keep going. I’ve got to push. I can’t let my friends down.”

Nancy relished adventures to celebrate milestone birthdays: white water rafting in the Grand Canyon for her 50th, a two-week whirlwind tour with her friend Duane for her 55th, and tandem skydiving for her 60th.

Nancy was predeceased by the three rescue dogs that she treasured — Baron, Sly, and Shirley.

She is loved and missed by countless friends, her parents Richard and Judith Dolan, sister Karen Walker (husband Kevin) and their children Sarah and Thomas, brother Sean (wife Jackie) and their children Liam, Kevin, and Jude, and  “nephews of Aunt Nancy” Ben and Chris Potter.

A Celebration of Life Memorial Service will be held September 18, 2022 at 2:00 pm at 1000 Grandview Commmunity Room, 1000 Grandview Ave.Pittsburgh, PA 15211.

Arrangements have been entrusted to the Warrick-Kummer-Rettig Funeral Home, Columbiana, Ohio.

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