Details

Collection Summary
Collection: FND001 - SHSND Foundation - North Dakota Heritage Family Memorial Program
Series: Tribute
Folder: DIG
Item: 271582
Title: Janice B. Nelson
Date: 6/6/1938-3/19/2025
Creator:
Inscription/Marks: 6/6/1938
Summary: Janice B Nelson passed away peacefully in Fargo, ND, with family at her side on March 19, 2025. Her funeral service was held March 31, 2025, at Hope Lutheran Church, North Campus, Fargo. Interment was in the Nelson family plot at the Prairie Home Cemetery, New Rockford, ND. Janice Barbara Nygaard was born on June 6, 1938, in rural Hendrum, MN, to Oliver and Bernice (Bjordahl) Nygaard. Her early life was marked by a dedication to education, graduating from Grand Forks Central in 1956 and the University of North Dakota, summa cum laude, in 1960. She then started working in research at Parke-Davis in Ann Arbor, MI, for one year. Janice returned to Grand Forks and on June 22, 1961, at United Lutheran Church, she married Dennis Raymond Nelson of rural Sheyenne, ND, who was studying for his Ph.D. in biochemistry at UND. Together, they built a life filled with love and service. Janice's favorite story from her time at UND was meeting her husband Dennis in an organic chemistry lab, where she did an honors project in biochemistry, and he was a graduate student participant in her research study. During her professional journey in Fargo, ND, she continued to excel. She worked at multiple hospital clinical chemistry laboratories and rose to the Chief Technologist position in each laboratory. She took some time off to focus on her young family and later obtained her North Dakota teaching certification and began teaching in West Fargo. As her children grew, she reentered the hospital field, and earned a Master of Business Administration. She was honored as Fargo-Moorhead Boss of the Year, appointed by Governor Ed Schafer and then by Governor John Hoeven (Current United States Senator for North Dakota) to the North Dakota State Board of Medical Technology, and eventually retired as Executive Partner for Laboratory Services for the MeritCare Health System in 2002. Even after her retirement, she served six years on the Board of Directors of Bethany Retirement Living. She was a role model and mentor to many young women throughout her career. Janice's true passion was caring for others. She was a devoted wife, mother, and grandmother, always putting her family first. Her love was evident in the countless hours she spent planning weekly itineraries for grandma and grandpa camp, sewing special items for her children and grandchildren, from Little House on the Prairie dresses and bonnets to Halloween costumes, pajamas and bathrobes. Janice's baking was legendary, with home-baked cookies always ready for family and visitors. She couldn't resist turning rhubarb into as many variations as possible, proudly using a variety passed down in her family. She even learned to make cream puffs to bring comfort to her father-in-law in his final days. Janice was an active member of Hope Lutheran Church, where she served and taught Sunday School. She cherished her time with friends, enjoying bridge, bowling, and heartfelt conversations around the kitchen table and traveling around the world with her husband and family. She was a devoted daughter and sister, caring for her parents in their final years through their struggles with Alzheimer’s. Despite facing health challenges later in life, including arthritis and Alzheimer’s, Janice's spirit remained strong. She spent nearly five years at Bethany on University until her passing, and despite the physical challenges, those years were filled with love and many caregivers who became adopted family to her and Dennis both. Janice is survived by her husband of over 63 years, Dennis; her brother, Donald Eugene Nygaard (Georgia), of St. Paul, MN; her son, David, of Minneapolis, MN; her daughter, Barbara (Jerry) Johnson, of Huntington Woods, MI, and granddaughters, Annika, Maari, and Elli; and her daughter, Laurie Nelson, of Princeton, NJ, and grandsons Parker, Tate, and Leo.
Red ID: FND_I_79078 Image ID: 525591 Image Notes: FND001 271582

Collection: FND001 Digitized Images from Collection
Title: SHSND Foundation - North Dakota Heritage Family Memorial Program
Date: -

Summary: The North Dakota Heritage Family Memorial Program is sponsored by the North Dakota Funeral Directors Association. The life stories of deceased North Dakotans are featured in an archvied collection. Current partners in the project are Eastgate Funeral & Cremation Services, Bismarck Evans Funeral Homes, Carrington and New Rockford Everson-Coughlin Funeral Home, Williston Fulkerson Funeral Home, Tioga Fulkerson Funeral Home, Watford City Fulkerson Stevenson Funeral Home, Williston Nero Funeral Home, Bottineau Parkway Funeral Service, Bismarck Springan Stevenson Funeral Home, Stanley Stevenson Funeral Home, Dickinson These funeral homes provide recent obituaries to the Foundation, where staff and volunteers format, edit and archive each memorial. The memorials are posted, and copies are sent to the family for their input and approval. The listing currently features more than 13,000 memorials, and is constantly updated as new memorials and histories are received.

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