Nicole Ann Spretnak

Age 73 – Upper Arlington, OH

Born in Columbus on February 15, 1951, Nicole Spretnak died in the family home of 70 years on September 8, 2024, of colon cancer. 

A pre-Title IX tomboy, Nikki played every sport in season. She always regretted not being able to play full-court basketball. A graduate of Upper Arlington High School, Nikki attended Kent State, witnessing the shooting of four students in May 1970. She then earned a BFA from the San Francisco Art Institute and attended the NYU Tisch School of the Arts Graduate Film Program. Upon returning to Columbus, she became Manager of the Ohio Film Bureau, helping to bring the major films Teachers, The Jesse Owens Story, and Mischief to be filmed in Central Ohio. At the age of 39 she became a CPA and worked at Price Waterhouse, Ernst & Young, and then the IRS as a Revenue Agent until her retirement.

Nikki’s volunteer work was extensive and included the Columbus Committee for UNICEF, the Columbus International Festival, and Camp Fire and Camp Wyandot. She loved organizing the neighborhood floats for the Fourth of July parade.

Colon cancer is a long haul with not much good news. Nikki was grateful to the family, friends, and neighbors who did so much for her. She is grateful to her parents, who formed deep bonds with families that have lasted to this day, and to her Southway Drive neighbors, most notably the neighbor-of-all-neighbors, Elizabeth Snyder, who kept Nikki out of a nursing home.

She is preceded in death by her parents, Donna and Joseph Spretnak. She is survived by her sister, Charlene Spretnak, and a niece, Lissa Merkel. She regrets leaving Daisy, the sweetest Lab who ever lived, but she will be well cared for.

A memorial service will be held at the Clintonville Woman’s Club, 3951 N. High Street, Columbus, at 3:00 on Sunday, September 22, 2024.

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