Michael J. Nelson Memorial
Donation protected
Our dad, Mike, passed away Monday, December 12, 2016, he was 62 years old. He passed away with very little: he was homeless, living in a motel, and only had one suitcase of belongings left to his name. Not only has his current situation been tragic for us children. Losing our dad has been the biggest heartache of all. We are devastated by the loss of our father. We want to do what is right for him, and we believe that would be to bury our dad next to his mother, Valys Nelson (Mudge) at Hillside Cemetery in Minneapolis, MN. We are facing an enormous financial responsibility, and we are finding that we are struggling to meet our father’s final wishes. We thought we would be able to cover the cost, but it seems as though we cannot. Initially, we did not want to start a go-fund-me page, but we do not know what to do other than to ask for help to alleviate this financial challenge we are facing.
We want to share with you a little bit about our dad Michael James Nelson:
In our younger years, our dad was a family man. He was an extremely hard worker and provided for his family the best that he could. Most of us kids have different mom’s, so I can only imagine how tough it was to get us together for holidays. Somehow our dad and step mom pulled it off. We celebrated Christmas, many other holidays and gatherings together for many years. We have countless fond memories of him. He was an amazing man. He was fun, carefree, full of stories, and jokes. He always wore his cowboy hat, shiny belt buckles, and cowboy boots. He was proud of himself and his family.
Unfortunately, our father has had many demons and struggles in his life. He was a rambling man and did not stay in one place for very long. In previous months he was at the Fortress (a faith-based recovery home) in Willmar, MN. Our dad has resided in many areas over the last eight years: AZ, Webster, SD, Minneapolis, MN, Rochester, MN, and Willmar, MN. He lived in and out of institutions, apartments and the streets.
Us children, Amy, Ron, Alina, Lucas, and Mike Jr. were the light in his eyes. We want to keep his memory alive by giving him a final resting place. Our dad will ramble on in our hearts instead of this earth.
A Celebration of Life Gathering will take place on January 15th, 2017. If you are unable to make it and wish to contribute you can do so here. Any funds that are left over will be donated to the Fortress in Willmar, MN in memory of our father.
Thank you for your time and any contributions made
Sincerely,
The Nelson Family
We want to share with you a little bit about our dad Michael James Nelson:
In our younger years, our dad was a family man. He was an extremely hard worker and provided for his family the best that he could. Most of us kids have different mom’s, so I can only imagine how tough it was to get us together for holidays. Somehow our dad and step mom pulled it off. We celebrated Christmas, many other holidays and gatherings together for many years. We have countless fond memories of him. He was an amazing man. He was fun, carefree, full of stories, and jokes. He always wore his cowboy hat, shiny belt buckles, and cowboy boots. He was proud of himself and his family.
Unfortunately, our father has had many demons and struggles in his life. He was a rambling man and did not stay in one place for very long. In previous months he was at the Fortress (a faith-based recovery home) in Willmar, MN. Our dad has resided in many areas over the last eight years: AZ, Webster, SD, Minneapolis, MN, Rochester, MN, and Willmar, MN. He lived in and out of institutions, apartments and the streets.
Us children, Amy, Ron, Alina, Lucas, and Mike Jr. were the light in his eyes. We want to keep his memory alive by giving him a final resting place. Our dad will ramble on in our hearts instead of this earth.
A Celebration of Life Gathering will take place on January 15th, 2017. If you are unable to make it and wish to contribute you can do so here. Any funds that are left over will be donated to the Fortress in Willmar, MN in memory of our father.
Thank you for your time and any contributions made
Sincerely,
The Nelson Family
Organizer
Alina Peterson
Organizer
Rochester, MN