• by Wayne Friedman , February 18, 2011

Nancy Carr, longtime senior communications executive at the Hallmark Channel, passed away on Friday.

Carr, 50, died in a Los Angeles-area hospital on February 18, after fighting an illness from a brain tumor.

She had done much to raise the profile of the Hallmark Channels, which included the Hallmark Movie Channel, one of the largest independently owned cable groups. She helped deepen the awareness for TV advertisers of Hallmark as one of the few places for family programming.

Bill Abbott, president and chief executive officer of Hallmark Channels, stated: "Hallmark Channels is saddened by the passing of our friend and colleague, Nancy Carr, who was most recently senior vice president, corporate communications for Hallmark Channels. Nancy succumbed today in a Los Angeles area hospital after battling a long illness. We are grateful to Nancy for guiding the company's corporate media strategy for more than five years."

"On the personal side, those of us who cared deeply for and about Nancy will never forget her dedication to life's smallest creatures, as she worked tirelessly for animal rights and animal rescue. The company sends deep and sincere condolences to Nancy's family."

A 20-year veteran, Carr came to Hallmark in 2005 after a long stint working for CBS promoting CBS mini-series, special events and awards shows like The Grammys and Hallmark Hall of Fame specials.

She is survived by her husband, Ronnie Bradford, who also worked at CBS, and had two stepchildren.

No memorial service had been scheduled at press time. But Hallmark said donations could be made to feralcatcaretakers.org and fixnation.org -- two organizations that Carr supported.