Posted: 6/13/07
2007 Midsummer parade grand marshall is lover of golf, friends, of life in general
 He's 93 and he golfs every day, and doesn't believe he has missed many, if any Midsummer parades. So it's fitting that Everett Nelson should lead the 2007 parade as grand marshall. He's practicing his wave to give to the parade goers, give him one of yours Sunday, June 17, 2 p.m. in downtown North Branch. |
By MaryHelen Swanson
If you're going to interview Everett Nelson of North Branch, you'll have to get up early, before he goes to the bakery, or slip it in between the bakery stop and the 12:30 p.m. golf outing.
And, that's five days a week.
So that's what we did here at the Post Review so we could tell the tale of the life and times of this year's Midsummer parade's grand marshall.
Nelson is a lifer in North Branch, born Sept. 13, 1913 to Fred and Miranda Nelson.
He was brother to Clifford and Warren, all of whom grew up in rural North Branch.
In his younger years, Nelson was an eager student, eager to attend school one would think. This is evidenced by a plaque he proudly shows off, it's for not being tardy or absent.
But did he like school that much? Not really, he said, he would have preferred to stay home and help his dad with the farm animals. He liked that.
In 1941, Nelson was drafted into the service - April 18, 1941 is his exact memory.
He remembers going to Center City and taking the train to Wyoming where he boarded the Northern Pacific and ended up at Fort Snelling where he was inducted into the Army National Guard.
He then went to Camp Clayborn, Louisiana. Some months later, he said he missed out on his furlough when Pearl Harbor was bombed.
When they say you'll see the world when you join the Army, they're not kidding. Nelson's duty took him to Ireland and Africa and Italy and places in between.
Like many from North Branch, after serving in World War II, they were called up to serve during the Korean war.
Nelson married his wife Dorothy in January 1946 (she passed away in July 2000), and they started building the home Nelson still lives in on Oak Street. They lived in the basement while they worked on the house.
But Nelson said while he was away in Japan, his wife had the upper part constructed.
Nelson planted every tree in the yard, each with its own unique history. A large Hackberry tree stands over his driveway. Nelson brought it home on top of his car, in the rain, and the water washed mud over his windshield. It was spindly, he said. It isn't spindly any more. Under it is not a good place to park your car in the fall with its reddish berries, but the robins love it, he said.
Like old friends, each tree around his yard is fondly remembered as coming from here or there.
On Nov. 1, 1940, Nelson went to work at the Ford garage in North Branch as a mechanic. He remembers working on a number of tractors. He also remembers driving a Ford tractor through the Midsummer parade.
Nelson retired as a mechanic at age 65, then went on to become the groundskeeper at the North Branch Golf Club for another dozen or more years.
Playing golf became a passion. And today, he's out on the course every weekday at 12:30 p.m. three of the four seasons of the year.
Nelson is able to live by himself. He cooks for himself, and cuts his grass and often a neighbor's and snowblows his driveway, and her's too in winter.
He has two sons and a daughter, who he said look after him pretty closely.
Because he no longer has a car, he walks - everywhere.
He walks to the bakery downtown North Branch each day, sits at the back table with his friends, and the guys sort out the problems of the world. Do they get them solved? "Oh yea, we solve everything," he mused.
"We probably do more complaining than anything else," he said with a sly grin.
Nelson doesn't miss a day at the bakery, not even in the winter.
He walks to Trinity Lutheran Church ... he just plain walks where ever he wants to go.
"I'm happy," he concluded, saying he's got no timetable to follow.
After church on Sunday, Bud Hals takes him to Green Acres Country Care Center where he helps out. This started when his wife was there, and so he continues.
And then there are the people he meets at the golf course. He's probably the oldest golfer on the course, he said, and he sort of has the nickname the "old guy." But that doesn't bother him.
"It's a great life," he concluded of his plight in this world.
There's a comfy chair in his living room facing toward the window. He doesn't turn it around because that's where he sits and watches the world go by.
And from that vantage point he can point out who lived and who still lives in each home up and down the street.
"It's history," he said.
In his TV room, he has dozens of family pictures mounted on boards so he can see them all the time. What's the use of putting them in a box, he asked.
His family consists of his three children: Cathy Nelson of Forest Lake, Doug Nelson of Edina and Mike Nelson (Barb) of Tulsa, Oklahoma, six grandchildren, four great-grandchildren and numerous "grand-dogs" who all love to visit. Nelson is expecting most of them to be on hand for the Midsummer parade. "They always come up for the parade," he said.
And this year, they have an even greater reason to come home.
Comment from Blair Hamren, 6/19/07
Nice to see Ev on the front page. He would not know this but he'll get a kick out of it. I grew up across the street from Ev and when our TV reception went bad with what looked like electrical interference, we would say "quit shaving Everett" (since he had quite a stubble of whiskers).
Blair Hamren
Comment from Ed Hamren, 6/21/07
What a great story!!! We lived across the street from you for 25 years, Ev...and you and Dorothy were great neighbors. Dorothy was a fine teacher at school, too, and our kids grew up together. I'm glad that Doug stayed with golf...those were great years hauling those kids to golf tournaments and winning at the state. We live with Dane in Virginia now...he and I watch all the Twins games on TV...Sybil has a loss of memory so most of the time she doesn't know who I am...we have been married 59 years now...otherwise we are in pretty good health...I'm 87 and she is 84.
Take care of yourself, Ev...
Ed
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