Nelson, Dorothy J. (1918-2016)

NELSON, HANSON

Posted By: Paul Nagy (email)
Date: 12/30/2016 at 16:22:55

Dorothy J. Nelson
March 11, 1918 - December 01, 2016

Dorothy J. Nelson (née Hanson), 98, died on December 1, 2016, into the arms of her Savior, Jesus Christ.

She was born on March 11, 1918, in Forest City, Iowa, to Knut and Gina Hanson. After graduating from high school, she attended and graduated from Waldorf College in Forest City, Iowa. During her high school and college years, she worked for her father’s farm implement business as a bookkeeper. Dorothy spent her life seeking out and helping others in need no matter their race or religion. A member of St. Luke’s Lutheran Church, Sheboygan Falls, Wisconsin, she worked tirelessly in gathering food, clothing, furniture, and support for needy families.

While attending college, she sang in the Waldorf Choir and actively participated in the Lutheran Student Association (LSA). While attending an LSA ashram in Washington, D.C., she met Elmer C. Nelson from Maple Lake, Minnesota, and after a two year courtship, they married on May 21, 1939.

After their wedding, they moved to Minneapolis, Minnesota, where they lived until 1946. Then, they moved to Forest City, Iowa, so Elmer could help his father-in-law (Knut) with the Farmall implement business. In 1953, they, again, moved back to Minneapolis. Dorothy worked for some years first in a dental laboratory and then at Dayton’s Department store in the stationery sales administration office. In 1980, however, they began to split their time between Minneapolis and Mesa, Arizona.

Dorothy is survived by her two sons, (1) the Rev. Karl (Kathy) Nelson, of Sheboygan, Wisconsin, and their children, David (Sara) Nelson, and their children, Theodore and Avery, of Chicago, Illinois, and Sarah Nelson, of St. Petersburg, Florida, and (2) the Rev. Keith (Ann) Nelson, of Omaha, Nebraska, and their children, Matthew (George) Nelson, of London, England, and Adam (Jay) Nelson, of Madison, Wisconsin.

She was preceded in death by her husband of fifty-nine years, Elmer, on August 21, 1998; her parents; and her six siblings, Mildred, Enid, John, Ruth, Margaret, and Barbara.

A memorial service will be held at a later date. She will be inurned at Woodlawn Cemetery in Annandale, Minnesota. A memorial fund has been established at the Sharon S. Richardson Community Hospice in Dorothy’s name.

Dorothy’s family wish to send heartfelt thanks to the staff of Terrace Place and to the Sharon S. Richardson Community Hospice for the exceptional and loving care Dorothy received from them.

Copyright © 2016, Reinbold-Novak Funeral Home, Sheboygan, Wisconsin 53081

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