Raymond Nelson

Raymond Nelson, 93, of Genoa, died Wednesday, March 1, 2023, at Genoa Medical Facilities.

Funeral services are 10:30 a.m. Saturday, March 4, 2023, at Augustana Lutheran Church. Visitation is Friday, March 3, 2023, from 5 – 7 p.m.  at the Church. Visitation will continue Saturday morning from 9:30-10:30 a.m. at the church.  Interment is in Valley View Cemetery.

Memorials are suggested to Augustana Lutheran Church or Genoa Medical Facilities.

Born on the farm on March 24, 1929, the fifth of seven children to Herman and Signe (Kallberg) Nelson, Ray completed elementary and high school education at District 35 and Genoa Public, respectively.  The two-year program at Luther College in Wahoo preceded employment at the C.A. Swanson company in Omaha.  While living there, Ray met his future wife, Jean Hagen.  The couple married in Titonka (Iowa) on August 28, 1949.

Raymond returned to Nance County with Jean to farm near his parents and brother.  For the next 48 years, they raised crops, milked cows, and fed hogs.  In 1954, they had moved across the road to the land his grandfather purchased in the 1890s.  There, they raised four children.

Augustana Lutheran Church was a central part of family life.  Ray taught Sunday School, sang in the choir, and served on church council.  Music, whether traditional hymns or the many sounds of Branson, gave Raymond joy.  For three terms Ray served on the local school board and many years on the Farmers Co-op board.

In 2008, Ray and Jean moved into Genoa.  In retirement, Ray volunteered for hospice, meals on wheels, and the Genoa Indian School Museum.

An unassuming man, Ray was gentle, kind and loving.  He loved learning, reading multiple newspapers a day.  Ray held a special interest in the people of Genoa; he could find a connection between nearly anyone and a person who had lived in Genoa.

Raymond is survived by his wife of 73 years, Jean, son Mark (Rachel) Nelson, Norfolk; daughters Susan (Jerry) Donlan, Omaha, and Dawn (Michael) Drey, Omaha; son-in-law Michael Liegl, Fort Worth; 12 grandchildren and 9 great-grandchildren; brother Merle (Caryl) Nelson, Lake Forest, IL; sisters-in-law Alice Nelson, Boise, ID, Doris Schram, Geneseo, IL, JoAnn Carlson, Burt, IA; and several nieces and nephews.

Raymond is preceded in death by his parents; brothers Kenneth Nelson and Vernon Nelson; sisters/brothers-in-law Pearl (Ray) Bunde, Harriet (Nevin) Plantz, and Dorothy Nelson; daughter Cynthia Liegl; grandson Paul Nelson; and brothers-in-law Herb Schram and Ralph Carlson.