Nancy Guenther Chapman, founder of the hyperlocal news site NancyOnNorwalk, died over the weekend at the age of 65 after a battle with cancer.

Nancy was a force in the city of Norwalk with her in-depth and honest reporting on civic issues. But in person, she could initially be underestimated, according to friends and colleagues.

“When I first met her, I was like, ‘This is, Nancy? She’s timid,’” recalled Claire Schoen.

“She was quiet and self-effacing for the most part, but she did her job relentlessly,” added John Levin.

Nancy and her journalist husband Mark Chapman launched NoN in 2012, with their son as webmaster, as a place for the public to get what they called "the unvarnished" story about issues in the city. NoN became a nonprofit in 2014.

“Mark was really the driving force of, ‘Somebody besides the local daily needs to cover Norwalk, particularly needs to cover government,’” explained Harold Cobin, who joined NoN as a reporter and photographer in 2015.

“They were providing an extraordinary service to our community, reporting on politics, elections, land use and conflicts and grant awards—the things that actually matter to people who live here” stated Levin, a member of the Board of Directors. “They were a hyperlocal journalism media company that was focused exclusively on Norwalk.”

Schoen, who’s also on the Board of Directors, was a routine reader before joining NoN.

“She just got to the facts and said things as they were and reported in a way I hadn't seen before. Early on, people used to say ‘Oh, it's a blog.’ And maybe it started that way. It had its own tone and its own personality that was real and honest,” Schoen told News 12.

Then in 2016, Mark unexpectedly died. Nancy was determined to continue their work. “I think a lot of the people in public office initially, when Mark died said, ‘Nancy's going to take this over?’ And it didn't take very long till they were like, ‘Nancy's in the building. Watch out,’ Schoen said. “She earned their respect pretty quickly because she got to the issues at hand and covered them very well.”

Not that it wasn’t a challenge. “It's a seven day a week operation. You have to remember that she was not only there writing stories, but she'd be up all night putting the next day's screens together,” recalled Cobin.

“She did work amazing hours. She was committed to doing the best job that she possible could,” Levin said.

The site operated on a shoestring budget for years with Nancy paid as a contractor.

“There was very little money in the beginning. She often worked on her own, wasn't making enough to support herself and was supplanting that with other income,” Schoen explained, “Just before COVID we were able to pay her a salary and take out taxes and give her all the benefits that she needed, so she really gave herself to this in a way that I’ve never seen anyone do before.”

In 2018, Nancy won the First Amendment Award from the Connecticut Society of Professional Journalists for her reporting on a former state senate candidate’s DUI arrest. She also knew all the ins and outs of the years-long legal battle between the city and developer Jason Milligan over a development on Wall Street.

“Over the years, she was in court every single time, covering every single little nuance,” Cobin said. “She was able to go very much more in depth on stories.”

But for Nancy, journalism wasn't just a job.

“Most news sites like this fizzle out after about two years. Nancy kept this thing going for 12 years, and nationally she is recognized for having done that,” Schoen told News 12.

The site currently operates with a ten-member board of directors and some freelance writers. The board plans to hire a new managing editor shortly to help carry on Nancy’s legacy.

“She is greatly missed, but we are really determined to make sure that NancyOnNorwalk continues and is able to serve our community as it has in the past,” Levin said.

NoN relies on community support to keep going. You can learn more about the nonprofit or make a donation here.