David Nelson

Nelson, David Earl of Coon Rapids, MN, completed the last leg of his earthly journey on July 24, 2010 at home amongst his family. Dave was born on April 26, 1943 in North Mankato, MN to the late Dee and Stella Nelson. Dave grew up in Mitchell. South Dakota where he was active in the high school band as well as a dance band, champion marble shooter and raising homing pigeons. On October 28, 1961, David married Bonnie (Tastad) and they established their home in South Dakota. He attended S.D. School of Mines and Technology in Rapid City, SD and the University of SD. Upon completion of a correspondence computer programming course, he moved his family to Minnesota where he began his 35 year career at the Dayton Hudson (now Target) Corporation in the Information System (IS) area. Dave, Bonnie and their daughters, Renee and Tiffany lived in Champlin, MN. Dave met his second wife, Karen (Jackson) at work and they wed on October 23, 1987. They moved to Coon Rapids, MN where they still spent the summers while enjoying the warmth of Florida in the winter. His IS career was a perfect match for his love of gadgets, remote controls and machines. His real passion, however, was new cars! He'd limit himself to a new one about every 3 years while "shopping" for his family and friends regardless of their need for a new car. Because of his new car "need", Dave also became well known as a used car salesman. In fact, friends often asked about specific options and colors while he was shopping with the hopes that they'd purchase the car in a couple of years. Dave loved to work with his hands and was always building something or remodeling either his home, or those of his daughters and friends. He'd have to do a lot of thinking and planning before starting but the finished product was perfect and exceeded all standards. He always left a small portion of the house unfinished due to his fear that you'd die if the house was completely done. David is survived by Karen, his wife of 23 years; sister, Elizabeth Reynolds of St. Louis, Missouri; his daughters, Renee (Jeff) Kessler of Andover and Tiffany Nelson of Ramsey; grandchildren, Justin and Megan Kessler, and Steven, Nicole and Jennifer Pierce; and great-granddaughter, Naomi Pierce. He is preceded in death by his parents and sister, Sue. A memorial celebration of Dave's life will be held Tuesday, July 27, 2010 at 7:00 PM, friends may gather one hour prior to service, at United Methodist Church of Anoka, 850 South Street in Anoka. In lieu of flowers, please contribute to your local food shelf. Washburn-McReavy Coon Rapids Chapel 763-767-1000

Tributes

David Nelson

July 26, 2010

Tributes

David Nelson

July 26, 2010

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