- Born on: April 10, 1941
- Departed on: January 4, 2023
- Resided in: Davenport, IA
Donald "Don" R. Nelson
Donald R. “Don” Nelson, 81, passed away on January 4th, 2023, at Unity Point Health – Trinity surrounded by his loving family. A celebration of life mass will take place at 10:00 AM Thursday, January 12th at St. John Vianney Catholic Church, 4097 18th Street Bettendorf, IA 52722.
Don is survived by his wife of 61 years, Madonna; his son Rick (Kyle) Nelson of Nashville, TN; son Doug (Diane) Nelson of Bettendorf, IA; son Keith (Carmen) Nelson of Old Hickory, TN; daughter Rozanne (Eddie) Frazier of Murfreesboro, TN; son Randy (Kelly) of Ashland, OH; 14 grandchildren; and siblings: Kenneth Nelson, Edward (Mary) Nelson, Alice (LeRoy) Stoltenberg, and Patricia Doty-Plambeck. He was preceded in death by his parents, stepmom Agnes Nelson, and siblings Allan Nelson, Junior Nelson, Marlene Abel, and Nancy Powers.
Don was born April 10th, 1941, to Vernon and Edith (Leland) Nelson in Blue Earth, Minnesota. He graduated from Davenport Central High School. After school he worked as a union carpenter before starting Don Nelson and Sons Construction, which he owned and operated for over 40 years before retiring in 2010. Don married Madonna Werthmann on June 9th, 1962, in Davenport. Don enjoyed fishing, reading, and watching westerns, cracking jokes (that only his grandchildren found funny most of the time), and spending time with those he cared about. His humor and addictive smile will be missed by all who knew him.
Memorial donations may be directed to the St. John Vianney in Bettendorf.
