Raymond Nelson

Ray Nelson passed on to be with his beloved Gerri this 21st day of March, 2019. He was 99. Raymond Lawrence Nelson was born in Wichita Kansas, where he grew up through hard times in the depression years, went to Wichita State and Kansas State, receiving Mechanical Engineering & MBA degrees. He married his sweetheart from Wichita, Geraldine Robertson, in 1942, after a courtship that involved dancing lessons on his part. His grace on the dance floor and the ice won her over. He enlisted as a Lieutenant in the Navy serving stateside until the end of WWII, after which Ray and Gerri moved to find work in Oklahoma. They had dreamed of living in Colorado, and relocated to Morrison for Ray's job with the BLM, but they decided Ray should take a better job with Dow Chemical in Michigan, moving there with sons Larry and Bob. Patti and Mark came along in Michigan, but in 1955 Ray was able to bring the family back to Boulder, Colorado. Ray and Gerri eventually built 2 homes on the hilltops in Boulder for their now 6 children, with Tom and Mary Kim rounding out the clan. His work in Boulder carried him away each day to a world that was somewhat secret from the busy Nelson family life, as he worked his way up to high responsibilities at Rocky Flats, with a couple brief interruptions relocating the family to Dallas and to Oak Ridge as the job demanded. But he always managed to bring us all back to the good life in Colorado, and to continue to cheerfully teach us to ski, skate, camp and fish. This could have mainly been related to his passion for fishing the lakes and streams he loved here, and this avid pursuit garnered him a status almost legendary with family and friends. Ever modest, in his last days when affectionately reminded that he was once probably one of the best fishermen in Colorado, he simply replied with a big smile "...Really?" While always a quiet, thoughtful, gentle and humble man his intellect and creative thinking were also stuff of wonder, he was spoken of as a genius by a close colleague. He had other wide interests, including beekeeping, master gardening, airplanes and just tinkering with, fixing and building things, but always placed his Catholic faith and family first. Ray was a devoted husband and caring, supportive father. Together Ray and Gerri found strength and patience to guide and help each of their children and their grandchildren through difficult times. He much loved his grandchildren Kacia, Kelsey, Todd, Kris, Cassie, Mike, Nick, Taylor, Raena, Jacob, and his great grandchildren Ray, Franklin, and Alan. Catholic mass at 10am March 25, 2019 at Sacred Heart of Jesus. Rosary on Sunday at 4pm at Greenwood Mortuary. Burial at Sacred Heart of Mary. Contributions to Special Olympics.