Kenneth Irving Nelson – Ken (or Kenny to those closest to him) – passed away peacefully of natural causes on July 21, 2024 at his home in Roseburg, OR. He was 80 years old and lived a full and happy life.

Kenny was born on January 11, 1944, in Bottineau, ND, the youngest of three children born to Clarence N. and Alice C. (Barkway) Nelson. Kenny, along with sisters Barbara and Carole, spent his entire childhood and teenage years growing up in the same house in Bottineau, enjoying the outdoors and all four seasons with his friends, many of whom he was in regular contact with until his last days.

Kenny enjoyed playing football, baseball and hockey throughout his childhood and into high school, but he also developed a deep fondness for the movies shown at the cinema in town; Westerns were his favorite genre.

Although he aspired to become a military officer, a college education was expected of all three Nelson children, not surprising since both parents were lifelong educators. Kenny selected the University of North Dakota in Grand Forks, where he earned a degree in European History.

Prior to leaving for college, Kenny met a young lady from nearby Souris, Betty Ann Brandvold, and they began a courtship. Kenny and Betty were married in 1963 and welcomed the first of three children, Nick, born in late 1963. Eric followed in 1968 and Toby came along in 1971.

Fresh out of college, new husband and father Ken moved his young family to Connecticut for a teaching job; a year later they moved back to North Dakota for another teaching job in Minot. At some point Ken realized teaching was not what he wanted to do, so he applied for a civil service position with the Veterans Administration (VA) in 1969.

His first job with the VA was in Kansas City, KS. Ken was promoted a year later and took a new position at the Fort Snelling VA in St. Paul, MN, where he began a long career in the VA Personnel Office, recruiting and hiring hospital employees. In 1975 another promotion took the Nelson family to Kerrville, TX, then back to the Midwest in 1976 to the Fargo, ND VA hospital.

Ken and Betty divorced in 1977, but over the years they remained friendly and continued to enjoy each other's extended families. In 1979, another promotion took Ken to Roseburg, OR, where he was the Personnel Officer until his retirement in 1998. All three sons had graduated from Roseburg High School by then and moved on into their own adult lives.

In retirement, Ken enjoyed playing golf when he could; he was always a voracious reader, enjoying crime novels, spy thrillers, westerns, and a wide variety of biographies and historical non-fiction. He also loved solving the New York Times crossword puzzle every day, then watching the Seattle Mariners on TV at night, along with reruns of M*A*S*H, Cheers, Friends, Jeopardy!, The Three Stooges and The Rockford Files, among others. His nightcap was always a Western movie.

Ken's favorite retirement activity was taking long road trips to visit his children and family all over the country, sometimes being gone as long as six weeks at a time, but the real pleasure came from being with his family. Ken truly enjoyed watching his grandchildren grow and develop into young adults, and he was fortunate to meet his 1-year-old great-grandson just months before he passed away. Ken was also lucky in that two of his best friends also happened to be his brothers-in-law; the time spent with his sisters and their husbands were among his favorite adventures during these road trips.

While Ken endured some serious health issues over the past few years of his life, he made it through all of them. Nonetheless, those battles took their toll, but Ken never complained and never let his will or spirit be diminished, even at the very end. Fortunately, he had a lot of support from his entire family, friends and neighbors, and was always a gracious and appreciative host when they came to visit.

Kenneth I. Nelson will be truly missed by all, but his presence and legacy will endure for many years through the memories and anecdotes his family and friends share with future generations. As much as anything else, Ken was known for telling a great story, whether it was educational, informative, funny, touching, or even a little bit raunchy and risqué. His final wish was to be cremated and have his ashes spread in the mountains – one of his favorite places to enjoy nature and share with family and friends.

Ken is predeceased in death by his parents, his ex-wife and his grandson Levi; survived by sisters Barbara (Allan) Fredrickson of Seattle, WA and Carole (James) Drake of Minneapolis, MN, and sons Toby (Lisa) of Boca Raton, FL, Eric (Rhonda) of Rapid City, SD and Nick (Lisa) of Centerville, WA, and several grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

Those who knew Ken well also knew a man who could be a little stubborn and set in his ways, but he was always upfront about it; the last thing he ever wanted was for anyone to make a fuss over him. As such, he had requested cremation and that no formal services be held on his behalf. Instead, remember him in another way, such as reading a favorite novel again, going to a baseball game, challenging yourself with a crossword puzzle, or just sitting in the shade on a nice summer night with family and friends.