Life Legacy

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Millie Nelson Clear Lake, SD Millie (Mildred) Lorain Nelson was born February 11, 1920, in Arlington, SD, the daughter of John and Olga (Salley) Welsh. She died April 12, 2006, at the Good Samaritan Nursing Home in Clear Lake, SD, at the age of 86. Millie attended rural schools and graduated form Arlington High School in 1938. She attended Madison Normal and received a teaching certificate. She then taught rural school in Brookings County. Millie married Marvin Nelson, on October 10, 1942, at St. John's Catholic Church in Arlington, where she had also been baptized and raised in her faith. Marvin and Millie lived on a farm north of Arlington where they raised their five children. As the children began leaving the nest, Millie went back to teaching rural school and continued her education at Dakota State College where she graduated in 1970 with a B.S. in Education. After the rural school closed, she taught first grade in Arlington Elementary for many years, specializing in reading instruction. When a book salesman for Houghton Mifflin Company came to her classroom and saw how she was teaching with their materials, she was offered a job as a consultant for their company. As a reading consultant for 15 years, she traveled thousands of miles and gave workshops in schools in SD, MN, IA, NE, and ND. She retired from Houghton Mifflin in January of 1988. As she did so, she said, 'I hope to accept retirement as a time to bring happiness to those I love.' Those who knew Millie know that's exactly what she did. Her retirement party was called Marvelous Millie Day. These are but a few of the numerous messages written to Millie in her retirement book: 'Dynamic, classy lady; Gracious; Inspiration to children, teachers, principals, and to those of us in education; Lends grace and elegance to the workplace; Think of all the children's lives you have touched; You are much loved but also have the respect and admiration of all who have worked with you; You left a mark on all of us; You have endless energy and enthusiastic charm; Your voice is so comforting; Teachers appreciated your constant help and ideas; Everyone loves your sincerity and caring.' Not only did Millie touch the lives of all her co-workers, her family and friends have been touched beyond words. Millie's children have so many memories of the biggest and best birthday parties - the entire country school being invited; the warm homemade chocolate cake with fudge frosting that was waiting for them as they ran home from school; the summer vacations at the Lake Poinsett cabin; the evening rides which always seemed to end up at the ice cream store; the way Mom would let us make tents over the dining room table using blankets and sheets; and using the dining room table leaves to put across the chairs so we could play with clay. These are but a few of the happy memories that her children remember while growing up. 'There wasn't a lot of money, but there was a lot of love.' Upon retirement Millie and Marvin traveled for several years in their motor home enjoying their stops to visit family and friends. When Marvin's health failed, Millie was his caregiver for many years as he struggled with lung disease. She did so with patience and love. Upon his death in January 2001, Millie lost her spouse of 58 years, and although she was very lonely, she chose to live life to the fullest. One of her greatest highlights was her Caribbean Cruse which featured the stars from the Grand Ole Opry. She basked in her glory as Jimmy Dickens and Charlie Pride pushed her around in her wheelchair while calling her 'Miss Daisy'. At 83 years of age, she was still using her teaching skills and was tutoring a 6-year-old boy. This gave her great pleasure as she was a teacher at heart. Millie's last years were spent battling bone fractures and complications from a brain aneurysm. She kept a positive attitude and was an inspiration to those who knew her. She continued to to