Frank William Nelson Jr.'s Obituary
Francis William “Frank” Nelson, Jr., died peacefully in East Millcreek, Utah, on September 15, 2015 of renal failure.
Father, grandfather, brother, stepdad, uncle, and friend. Handyman, repairman, shared jokes and quick with opinions. He was born on December 29, 1945 in Tremonton, Utah, to Francis Wm. Nelson, Sr., and Lona Ann Hall Nelson. Until the age of 16, Frank was raised in East Hampton, Connecticut with his family and sisters, Joan and Annie. He later returned to Utah with his family, residing in the Glendale neighborhood.
In 1969 while working as a cook at Ballif Hall at the University of Utah, Frank met and married Emmaree Eltinge and later had a son, Cabot William. Later divorced. He met Karen Knott, whom he married in 1976 and had a son, Jason Frank; a daughter, Sharon Ann; and a step daughter, Karmen Grover.
In his itinerant life, he lived in Box Elder Co., Utah; East Hampton, Connecticut; Salt Lake City in the Glendale, Poplar Grove, and Rose Park neighborhoods; Sandy; Kearns; Las Vegas, Nevada; Redding, California; and Columbia, Missouri.
Frank worked many jobs in his hardscrabble life: tobacco fields, ornamental plaster artisan for sculpters, circuit board printer at Sperry Univac, appliance repair at Sunbeam Oster, carpentry, roofing, cement laying on many projects, siding at Tassie's, and maintenance technician at Ridgeland Downs. He earned certification as a dental lab technician.
Frank is survived by his children, Cabot Wm. (Jennifer) Nelson, Jason F. “Chunk” (Tammy Quintana) Nelson, and Sharon A. (Marcos Garcia III) Nelson, and Karmen Grover; brother Ray Facer; sisters Josephine Randall and Joan Mauger; seven grandchildren: Lona, Anysia, Geneva, Jasmine, Olivia, Clark and Sophia; extended step- and grandchildren; and many nieces and nephews. He even had one great-grandchild on the way. He venerated his grandchildren.
He is preceded in death by his parents, his sister, Annie, his second wife, Karen, and his nephew, Francis D. “Dee” Nelson, whom he considered his “little brother.”
Frank’s family express their gratitude to the staff of Woodland Park Care Center for their care in his final months.
Frank’s remains will be cremated. An informal memorial service will be planned to accommodate traveling family, friends, and well-wishers. Please offer email contact information for a future announcement.
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