Obituary: Dale A. Nelson
Dale A. Nelson , 62, died Nov. 17, 2015.
The son of the late Alan and Allene Nelson, then of Chicago, Ill., Mr. Anderson was born on Dec. 8, 1953.
In 1955, he moved to Lake Villa, Ill., where he converted his grandfather’s summer cottage on Sand Lake to a year round residence.
Mr. Nelson attended Lake Villa Grade School and Antioch High School.
He entered into the U.S. Army in 1971, and became a helicopter repairmen.
After his military career, Mr. Nelson moved to O’Fallon, Ill., where he began driving an ambulance and studying to become a mortician at Wolfersberger-Meyer Funeral Home.
He also took Emergency Medical Technician classes at Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville.
In 1977, he began tending bar in St. Louis. Mr. Nelson moved to Atlanta, Ga, in 1980, and started Kipling’s restaurant. While living in O’Fallon he met his future wife, Rita Griffin.
Dale and Rita moved to Los Angeles, Calif. They later lived in Miami, Fla., where Mr. Nelson worked in construction and was an owner/operator of a dump truck.
Mr. Nelson also worked at Gainesville Regional Utilities as a Meter Reader for 10 years, an was an over-the-road truck driver.
He and his wife later moved to Salisbury, N.C., where Mr. Nelson worked as a heavy equipment operator for an excavating company They moved to Chicago in 2003. His last place of employment was at the Edward Hines VA Hospital.
Mr. Nelson loved following sports, whether it was professional or collegiate. He also was an avid snow and water skier. He always had a cheerful spirit and was eager to help a friend or stranger in need.
Survivors include his wife, mother, sister, Alana (John) Piniotes; brothers, Charles and Bruce (April) Nelson; nephews, Joshua (Jill) Piniotes and Jason Pappas; and neices, Annette Nelson, Abigail Nelson. He also had a great nephew, Dominic Espino.
Mr. Nelson was preceded in death by his father and a nephew, Micah James Piniotes.
Services and interment will be held at Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery, 20953 W Hoff Rd, Elwood, Ill.
This story was originally published March 16, 2016 at 12:48 PM with the headline "Obituary: Dale A. Nelson."