LouCelle Irene (Nelson) GOLDEN FERTIK

FERTIK, GOLDEN, NELSON, SCHAFER

Posted By: Sarah Thorson Little (email)
Date: 3/1/2013 at 20:24:56

March 22, 1923 ---- February 17, 2013

LouCelle (Lou) Irene Nelson Fertik, 89, of Solon, Iowa, passed away February 17, 2013. Lou was born March 22, 1923, on the family farm near Eagle Grove, Iowa, to Albin J. and Tillie Mable Nelson. She is survived by her sister, Carol Jean Schafer (Bob), of Mahnomen, Minn., and brother, Orin L. Nelson (Marge), of Sun City, Ariz. LouCelle was predeceased by her brothers, Robert E. Nelson (Irma) of Eagle Grove, and Albin J. Nelson (Virginia) of Nashua. LouCelle graduated from Goldfield High School, attending two years at the Eagle Grove Junior College before completing her bachelor’s in music from St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minn. She received her master’s in music education from the Teacher’s College at Columbia University in New York City. Lou married Albert Golden in 1959 and lived in Bayside, New York. Mr. Golden passed away in 1969. She married Samuel Fertik in 1983, and they made their home together in Aventura, Fla. Sam passed away in 2001.

Lou Fertik was a life-long teacher who was passionate about music. Her teaching career began in Iowa in Gilmore City, Manson, and Boone. She attended the prestigious Interlochen Music Camp (University Division) in Traverse City, Mich., during the summers of 1945 and 1947. She embarked on an overseas teaching career in 1952 working in the Army Dependents’ School in Tokyo, Japan, for two years before transferring to Heidelberg Army Dependents’ School in Heidelberg, Germany. Returning to the States, she served as a vocal music instructor at Roslyn High school in New York from 1959 until 1978. She capped off her extraordinary career by traveling to Mussoorie, India, where she spent 1978-1982 teaching students from over 30 countries at Woodstock School, an international Christian school nestled in the foothills of the Himalayas. Lou and Sam retired in Florida in 1983, touring the country in their motor home, enjoying cruises and traveling to other countries, and visiting relatives and friends along the way. She was active in her home church, Bay Shore Lutheran Church, often accompanying at worship services. Lou was also an active member of the Post-Polio Association of Florida, where she bonded with other individuals who had experienced polio in their youth, and who now faced the challenges of post-polio syndrome. She was a fierce advocate for Tibetans the world over and served as regional director on the U.S.-Tibet committee.

An avid amateur genealogist, she helped her mother, Tillie Nelson, pen the family history. In 1998 she was thrilled to publish her autobiography “Beyond the Fields- World Travels,” sharing many of her round-the-world adventures. She was a member of the ISME (International Society of Music Educators), Business Professional Women’s Club, and was listed in the 1975 “International Who’s Who in Music and Musician’s Directory.” Lou moved to the Midwest in the summer of 2012 to be closer to family. She was a Norwegian through and through, fiercely independent, tenacious in things she believed in, yet ever generous to her family and friends from around the world. She was a unique individual who never backed down from a challenge, and who embraced each new experience life brought. Auntie Lou will be missed by all of her nieces, nephews, and extended family around the globe.

A private family burial at the Norway Lake Cemetery in rural Eagle Grove was held earlier. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests memorials be directed to the Albin J. and Tillie Nelson Scholarship Fund at Luther College, 700 College Drive, Decorah, IA. Stevens Memorial Chapel in Ames assisted the family.

Eagle Grove Eagle - Iowa
February 28, 2013