Obituary for Walter ‘Wally’ Elmer Nelson
July 30, 1938 – June 10, 2023
Walter “Wally” Elmer Nelson, 84, passed away at Aurora Zilber Family Hospice in Wauwatosa on June 10.
Wally was born to the late Walter and Lillian (nee: Nielsen) Nelson on July 30, 1938, in Racine. He was united in marriage to Julie McClure on Nov. 7, 1959, in Dubuque, Iowa. Wally worked at Western Publishing in Racine for 40 years.
Wally enjoyed woodworking, fishing and gardening. He was part of the Horticultural Committee at the Racine Zoo and played horseshoes in the Horseshoe League of Kenosha. He loved spending time with his family, especially his grandchildren and great-grandchildren. He was a loving husband and father who always took care of his family.
Wally will be deeply missed by his loving wife, Julie Nelson; children: Kimberly Nelson, Wendy Smaniotto, Katie (Don) Freitag, Patty Nelson (Tim Koterwski), and Walter Scott Nelson; grandchildren: Lori (Joe), Tony, Kyle (Mallory), Tayler (Kyle), Kelsey (Michael), Melissa, Jamie (Brandon), Emma, and Everett; nine great-grandchildren; brother, Harry Nelson; in-laws: Marilyn Nelson, Michael McClure, Colleen Rybarik, Lyndy (Cindy) McClure, Sonja McClure, and Debbie McClure; along with many other relatives and friends.
Wally is preceded in death by his siblings: Kathryn Leisner, Delores McKnight, and Otto Nelson; brothers-in-law: Lawrence McClure, Patrick McClure, and Daniel McClure.
Services
A celebration of Wally’s life will be held at 11 a.m. on June 20 at the Wilson Funeral Home with Chaplain Terry Peterson officiating. Family and friends are invited to a time of visitation at the funeral home from 10 a.m. until the time of service.
The family would like to extend a special thank you to Aurora at Home Hospice and Aurora Zilber Family Hospice in Wauwatosa for their wonderful care of Wally.
To send flowers or a memorial gift to the family of Walter “Wally” Elmer Nelson, please visit the Wilson Funeral Home Sympathy Store.
Obituary and photo courtesy of Wilson Funeral Home.
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