David Nelson

David Lee Nelson was born March 3, 1937, in Atlantic, IA, to Mervin and Juanita (Schooley) Nelson. He grew up on a farm north of Atlantic, attended Pymosa elementary school and graduated from Atlantic High School with the Class of 1955.
Following high school he enlisted in the United States Air Force, and was on active duty from 1955 through 1959. One of his fondest memories of the USAF was being stationed in Puerto Rico where he manufactured liquid nitrogen, and also sent out weather spy balloons while deployed in Germany. Dave was an over the road trucker for twenty five years and one of his proudest achievements was purchasing his first tractor trailer out of five in his lifetime.

Dave was united in marriage to his high school sweetheart, Julia Hemsted on April 18, 1957. Their lives were blessed seven times over. Jeff, Tim, Sue, Cindy, Curt, Rebecca and Pam all had a little bit of their father's ornery personality, but were also born with his zest for life and his immense love for his family. Dave will be remembered for his quick wit, sense of humor, one liners and his infamous use of a certain, favorite "sentence enhancer".

Dave was a very competitive man and anything he set out to do, he would never settle for anything less than perfection. Whether it was winning the King of the Hill title at Leisure Lanes for 13 consecutive weeks in a row, scoring a near perfect 299 in league at the Super Bowl, or having two holes in one at Nishna Hills Golf Course. He also played numerous positions for the Atlantic Merchants fast pitch softball team for nearly three decades. Dave didn't limit his hobbies to just sports; he also was an avid fisherman, traveling numerous times to Canada to try his luck at catching northern pike, walleye, muskee and lake trout.

David succumbed to an illness in the early morning hours of April 19, 2012, in his home surrounded by his family. Those left to cherish his memory are his wife, Julia Nelson; children, Jeff and LeAnn Nelson of Pierce, NE, Tim and Ann Nelson of Tuttle, OK, Sue and Byron Littleton of Atlantic, IA, Cindy and Jon Humphrey of Atlantic, IA, Curt and Ann Nelson of Atlantic, IA, Rebecca Killian and fiancé Aaron Brandwein of Springfield, MO, and Pam and Doug Faehnrich of Sioux Falls, SD. Grandchildren, Heather and Jim Hersom, Holly Nelson, Haley Nelson and special friend Andrew Karr, David and Melissa Nelson, Andrew and Natasha Nelson, Alex and Adam McCunn, Ashley Neighbors and special friend Michael Updike, Chad and Lori Steffens, Nicole Steffens, Jason Humphrey, Zac, Seth and Logan Nelson, Jared Hood, Paige, Kyle and Tyler Kilgore and Emma Faehnrich. Great-grandchildren, Lily and Lucy Steffens, Makynzie and Ethan Steffens, Corbin Nelson, Alexia Nelson, Hallie McCunn and Damian, Mercedez and Chloe Updike. His siblings, Gene Nelson and special friend Joyce Cline of Des Moines, IA, Ann and Steve Hinton of Atlantic, IA, Chris and Carol Nelson of Des Moines, IA. His sister-in-law, Margie Herbert, and countless nieces, nephews and friends.

Those waiting to greet him in heaven are his parents, Mervin and Juanita Nelson; granddaughter, Holly Nelson; mother-in-law, Mildred Weir; son- in-law, Mike Steffens; and brother-in-law, Wayne Herbert.

Visitation with family will be from 4:00 - 6:00 p.m., Sunday, April 22, 2012, at Hockenberry Family Care in Atlantic.

The funeral will be at 11:00 a.m., Monday, April 23, 2012, at the United Methodist Church in Atlantic, Iowa. Burial will be in the Atlantic Cemetery.