Obituary of Mae Elizabeth Nelson

Mae Nelson 1927 – 2012 It is with great sadness that the family of Mae Elizabeth Nelson announce her passing in the early morning hours of Wed., Oct 24, 2012 at the Jubilee Home in Lloydminster, at a young 85 years of age, with family by her side. Mae was born on July 9, 1927, on the family farm north of Marwayne. Mae is survived by her brother Martin; sister-in-law Edie; and her 3 nieces; Debbie (Barry Kerr), Donna, Dee (Dave Eshleman); great nephews and niece; Matthew, Ryan and Heather Kerr; and distant relatives in B.C., Scotland, and Denmark. Mae is predeceased by her parents, Cornelius and Jean, and her youngest brother, Jock. Mae obtained her primary education at the Tring School, a short distance from the family farm. Her trade, and life’s passion, was a Registered Nurse, which she received her 4 year degree in 1950 at Vegreville, AB. Throughout her life, Mae often referred to many of the "life lessons” that she learned from the teaching nuns at nursing school and was grateful for such a thorough education. As a nurse, Auntie Mae was always “on call” for family and her very first nursing job actually was as a young child when Martin was injured, connecting with a horse’s hoof, in which Mae was not only “first on the scene”, but attended him during his lengthy recovery – coincidentally, her last nursing job was at Points West, walking rounds with the night staff (forever the dedicated nurse). When living in the Marwayne area Mae was always available in case we needed stitches taken out and could by-pass the doctor (Donna), or if a certain person needed to be told to get to the emergency (Jock). Through- out the years, we, her nieces have also heard some very flattering comments from former colleagues in the medical field that Mae worked with, and, yes, we also can confirm “she was one of the best nurses” in her field. Due to her nursing profession, Mae resided in many cities in western Canada, in the 1960’s, 1970’s and 1980’s, Vancouver, Kamloops, Prince George, and Victoria, BC and AB cities including Lloydminster, Vermilion and Wetaskiwin. During the 1950’s Mae took on the challenge of over-seas nursing - these International destinations included Scotland, Jamaica, and Germany (where she worked at an American Air Force Base Hospital). She spoke many times of her experiences with patients and was grateful to be Canadian when comparing experiences with international standards, cultures, and conflicts. While completing her over-seas nursing contracts, Mae was also able to explore new countries, cultures, and the ways that the locals lived. Music was a great love of Mae’s from a very early age (as a child of 3 years riding her horse Dolly down the driveway, her parents mistook her “singing” for crying, as Mae was to tell generations later). Mae also loved the Jamaican reggae which she was introduced to while working in Kingston and travelling the island - even though the symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease were evident in recent years, if her Bob Marley cd was played, Mae lit up and sparkled with memories and words of the “Little Bird” song. Later in life (in her 60’s) Mae took a language class in preparation for her beloved Spanish travels – Mexico with Donna and Spain with Ev., a friend and fellow nurse, (flamenco guitar, Julio Iglesias and fine Spanish wines were a few of Mae’s favorites). As many relatives and friends lived in southern Alberta, B.C., Arizona, Scotland, and Denmark, these locations were amongst her travels to learn some history and catch up on family genealogy. During Mae’s nomadic career, she became a very enthusiastic baseball player, not only for the sake of meeting new friends but because she also loved that sport. As a back catcher, she played in provincials for the BC ladies all star team. Mae had a wonderful way with animals-be it a family pet, a stray, or animals in the wild. She did love her horses, especially those Palominos, and owned a few in her time. As a young girl, and as a “mature” woman, she rode in many parades and functions and had great love and admiration for the wild horses of southern Alberta. As Mae was also a huge dog lover, 2 of her regular visitors during these past trying years were 4-legged and even though she struggled with speech, she certainly could “grab an ear and tug” to communicate with our dogs and get their attention onto her. When Mae retired and moved back to the Marwayne area she enjoyed some newly acquired interests – not only the “fall suppers” which her and Martin enjoyed, but history and involvement in the community and an interest in cooking, especially baking. Due to the change of lifestyle, she bought her first cookbooks and we all welcomed the Christmas baking and other goodies but especially her “Blueberry Buckle”. She was an avid reader who owned not just the book, but usually the collections. She liked to sparkle, dress up and have fun…..firecrackers at Christmas, cross border shopping for satin party dresses, and of course, she did love her “gems and jewels”. We, the Nelson family, would like to extend our sincere thanks and gratitude to the staff at the Jubilee Home and Points West for the continuous circle of love and support shown to Mae and ourselves during the past years. At Mae’s request there will be no funeral service. Internment of her ashes will take place at a later date/spring 2013, at the Tring cemetery (north of Marwayne). In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to: The Jubilee Home Comfort Care Fund, 3902 – 45th Avenue, Lloydminster, SK S9V 1N9; Points West, 4025 – 56th Avenue, Lloydminster, AB. T9V 1N9; The Lloydminster SPCA, Box 10566, Lloydminster AB T9V 3A6; Tring Cemetery Fund, Marwayne. Arrangements entrusted to Creech’s Funeral Home