Freda I Nelson

FREDA I. NELSON, age 90 of Oconomowoc, passed away at Shorehaven Memory Care on January 19, 2024, surrounded by her family. Freda is preceded in death by her beloved husband, Howard Nelson; her father John Cimpson Smith-Beard, and her mother Mabel Irene (nee Tharpe) Smith-Beard; her brothers Jack and Charles; her sisters Ernestine Cobble, Francis McGregor, Virginia Love, Dulcia Pasold-Watson, and Barbara Rozman; and her granddaughter, Claire Elizabeth Nelson.

Freda was born November 21, 1933, in Blytheville, AR where she grew up during the depression and WWII with her 7 brothers and sisters. After graduating from high school in 1953, she moved to live with her sister, Dulcia, in Milwaukee, and worked as a switchboard operator for Gugler Lithographic, where she met her husband, Howard. They were married on April 25,1954 in Blytheville, Arkansas and made their home in Shorewood, WI for 15 years before moving to Beach Park in Pewaukee, WI for over 25 years; then Gulf Breeze, FL for 10 years, Roselle, IL for 10 years; and finally moving back to Wisconsin in 2015 to Oconomowoc.

Freda is survived by her sons, David (Barbara) of Eau Claire, WI and Donald (Kimberly) of Whitehall, MI; her daughter, Holly of Pewaukee; her grandchildren Allison (Kris) Rawls of Denver, CO, Megan (Zack) Fretty of Muskegon, MI, Grant Nelson of Milwaukee, Lauren Nelson of Grand Rapids, MI, and Eric Nelson of Muskegon, MI; her great-grandson Beau Rawls of Denver, CO, as well as her many nieces and nephews.

Freda was a co-owner of the Edgewood Galleries in Pewaukee & Hartland, she was an artist and talented quilter designing and making many quilts for friends, family, and those in need. She was a seamstress and made many of her own clothes, she painted many oil pictures and sold them at various art shows and festivals throughout Wisconsin. She loved gardening and baking. She always had the best cookies, cakes, and treats that she shared with family, neighbors, and friends. Freda was also a volunteer at Shorehaven for many years, she was a member of the Mainstays at the Pewaukee Yacht Club where she used her artistic talents to design and paint sailing trophies, and she was devoted to her church, where she sang in the choir, served as a communion assistant, and organized quilting groups to make quilts and prayer blankets for those in the hospital and in need. Freda was also an active member with PEO providing scholarships to Christian women.

Freda will be remembered for her love of family and her deep Christian beliefs and standards as a member of Christ the King Lutheran Church in Delafield and Lord of Life Church in Roselle, IL. She will be missed and fondly remembered by all of those who knew her.

The family would like to extend their heartfelt thanks to all of Freda’s caregivers at Shorehaven Memory Care, Legacy Hospice, and the support she received from her many friends at Lake Terrace Apartments and Shorehaven Towers & Memory Care. A funeral service will be held on Friday, January 26, 2024, at the Shorehaven Chapel in Oconomowoc. The Memorial Service will be at 11:00 AM. A private family Interment service will be held at Rose Hill Cemetery in Chicago at a later date. Please omit any flowers. Memorials can be sent to the Scholarship Fund at Christ the King Lutheran Church in Delafield, WI or to the Shorehaven Foundation, Oconomowoc, WI.