Nancy White was educated at Melbourne and Geelong CEGG Schools. She trained as a primary school teacher in Melbourne and taught at Camberwell CEGGS, in Melbourne, from 1938 until June 1948. She then worked as a teacher with the Anglican Mission in the lower Mamba, and in the Sangara-Isivita area of Oro Province, PNG, for nearly twenty years, from 1948 to 1967. In July 1948 Sister White was first stationed at St James School at Sangara, taking care of out-station schools in the Orokaiva district. Situated between Gona and Kokoda, the area had been devastated during the War. A number of missionaries had been killed. After the War, Fr. Dennis Taylor had guided the re-building of the mission station and school and and Mrs Lesley Taylor re-establshed the teaching. When Sr. White arrived, Margaret de Bibra was re-organising the schools, and Rev. David Hand, later Bishop Hand, was the acting priest in charge of Sangara. In January 1951 Mt Lamington erupted while Sr. White was on furlough. Ninety per cent of the people in the Sangara area were killed in the eruption, including all the mission staff at Sangara and the government staff at Higaturu. Sr White returned immediately to Waseta to help re-organise the mission outstations and schools in the Isivita district, from Agenehambo to Saga. Sr White then taught in the Mamba district from 1955 until 1963 when she moved back to the Orokaiva district. Sr White remained in that district until she left PNG in 1967.

NW/1-9 Drafts of Sr White’s autobiography, Sharing the Climb, with correspondence relating to its editing and launch, 1988-1991;
NW/10 Poems and notes, including verse by James Benson;
NW/11 Sr White’s prayer books, 1947 & 1952;
NW/12-17 Sr White’s correspondence, 1948-1978;
NW/18-19 Tapa wallet holding various personal documents;
NW/20-27 Teaching papers and books, 1950-1960;
NW/28 Bishop Hand – consecrations, 1950-1963;
NW/29-32 Various documents, including Out-Station reports, syllabi, teaching materials, Orokaiva word list, poems and drawings, 1951-1973;
NW33 Press cuttings, 1951-1953;
NW/34 Photographs, 1948-1994.
See Finding aids for details.