Blanche Nelson

Funeral Services for Blanche Nelson, of Albert Lea, will be held at 11:00 A.M. on Monday, December 31, 2012 at Grace Lutheran Church, Albert Lea. The Reverend Andrea Myers will officiate. Interment will be in Hillcrest Cemetery. Visitation will be from 4:00 P.M. – 7:00 P.M. on Sunday at Bonnerup Funeral Service, Albert Lea and one hour before the service at the church. Blanche died on Christmas Day 2012 at St. John's Lutheran Home. She was 90. She was born on March 27, 1922, in Albert Lea, the daughter of Elzie and Bertha (Inderlid) O'Neal. Blanche graduated from Albert Lea High School. She married Milton R. Nelson on February 2, 1941, in Mason City, Iowa.
A lifetime Albert Lea resident, Blanche had worked with her husband at Nelson's Appliance, later
Wilson & Co, and then Food Bonanza. She was a member of Grace Lutheran Church where she had taught Sunday School and also belonged to the American Legion Auxiliary. She enjoyed fishing and gardening. Blanche and Milton had especially enjoyed traveling to deliver the fruits of their garden to their children, who were scattered throughout the country. Blanche is survived by three sons: Jerry (Pat) Nelson of Raleigh, NC, Gene (Kym) Nelson of Aurora, CO, and Dan (Fran) Nelson of Bitely, MI; grandchildren: Christina (Brad) Williams and children Brooke and Ryan of Raleigh, NC, Sarah (Mike) Hicks and children Michael, Kaitlynn, Makayla and Makenzie of Hudson, NC, Kelly (Mark) Pennoyer and children Ella, Kate and Reese of Blaine, MN, Jenna Durbin and children Braden, Harleigh and Jackson of Grand Rapids, MI, Cory Nelson and Jessie Nelson both of Grand Rapids, MI; brother Roger O'Neal of Wilsonville, OR, sister-in-law Bernice O'Neal of Albert Lea and several nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by her parents, her husband Milton in 1989, great granddaughter Lenna Durbin and two brothers Leo and Harry O'Neal.