Kathleen M Nelson (nee Hay) was born on November 25, 1936, to Leo and Althea Hay in Anamosa, Iowa. She was the first of three children, followed shortly by her sister Maryann (stillborn) and her brother Keith. She grew up raising farm animals and playing a fast game of basketball. In third grade in January 1945, Kathy met her classmate Lowell Nelson, and they started dating in Anamosa High School where she was class valedictorian. They became engaged while Kathy was attending Iowa State Teachers College in Cedar Falls, and Lowell was attending Iowa State University in Ames.
Once she completed her degree in education, Kathy married Lowell in Anamosa on June 9, 1956. They moved into married student housing at Iowa State, and Kathy taught school to support them while Lowell finished his architecture degree. After Lowell’s graduation, they moved around the country for work as four children arrived: Brian in Iowa in 1958, Kristie in Florida in 1960, Lynda in Washington DC in 1962, and Loren in Maryland in 1964.
Kathy managed businesses that she and Lowell began, and maintained an active presence in United Methodist churches at Glenmont and later Mill Creek Parish, teaching Sunday School and Vacation Bible school, participating in Mary and Martha Circles and quilting activities, and designing banners for the sanctuary. Settling in for five decades into a home Lowell designed and built in Rockville, she and Lowell enjoyed spending time in getaways including Ocean City, Maryland and Nags Head, North Carolina. She and Lowell celebrated 64 wedding anniversaries and spent almost every day together. Kathy’s greatest passion in life was her diverse family spreading across four states and including twelve grandchildren and two great-grandchildren. A year and a day after Lowell’s death, Kathy died peacefully at age 85, at home with her daughter Lynda at her side.
Survivors include her children Brian Nelson & Barbara Calvi, Kristie Vice, Lynda & George Ralli, Loren & Sandra Nelson – grandchildren Samantha & William Worthington, Christopher & Blythe Ralli, Alexandria Nelson, Kevin & Jennifer Nelson, Madeleine Calvi, Joseph Ralli, Zachary Ralli & Shelby Welty, Cosette Nelson, Olivia Calvi, Nathan Vice, Jared Nelson, Matthew Vice – and great-grandchildren Finleigh Ralli and Cori Ralli.
The viewing for Kathleen Nelson will be Wednesday, January 26th, from 6 pm to 7 pm at Hines Rinaldi Funeral Home, 11800 New Hampshire Avenue, Silver Spring, MD 20904. The memorial service will be held Thursday, January 27th, at 11 am at Mill Creek Parish United Methodist Church, 7101 Horizon Court, Derwood, MD 20855. Flowers are welcome or in lieu of flowers, the family gratefully encourages donations to the Alzheimer’s Association at alz.org.
