Joy Nelson

Joy Jeanette (Harrington) Nelson, 88, of Clear Lake, formerly of Mason City, died Monday, May 8, 2017, at Rockwell Community Nursing Home, in Rockwell, Iowa.

Funeral services were held on Friday, May 12, 2017, at Evangelical Free Church, Clear Lake, with Pastor Dan Jordan officiating.  Burial was in the Britt Cemetery.

  Family suggests memorial contributions to the Joy Nelson Memorial Fund.

Joy was born March 3, 1929, the daughter of George William and Bertha Josephine (Brown) Jesse, in Britt, on her grandma’s farm.  She married Robert W. Harrington in 1950 and later married Donald James Nelson on Jan. 19, 1991, in Clear Lake.

A graduate of Titonka High School, Joy attended Hamilton College.  She worked as a bookkeeper most of her life at Hart Motors in Mason City, Vic & Van Accounting for 11 years and Unysis for six years.

Joy was a member of Evangelical Free Church in Clear Lake and the Christian Women’s Club.  She was known as the “Cookie Lady” because of her love for baking cookies, enjoyed planting seeds for flowers and plants.  She and Don were avid travelers, traveling extensively through Iowa and Minnesota.  They also liked spending time together at Daylight Donuts and Cabin Coffee.

She is survived by three children, Dennis (Jackie) Harrington, of Ellicott City, Md., Craig (Linda) Harrington, of Clarksville, Tenn., and Susan Harrington, of Ankeny, Iowa; two step-children, Kim (Patty) Nelson, of Marengo, Iowa and K’Lee (Colin) Latham, of South Carolina, and their families; two grandchildren, Matthew and Hope Harrington of Ellicott City, Md.; a sister, Marilyn (Harold) Heesch, of Titonka; and many nieces and nephews.

She was preceded in death by her parents; both husbands; and an infant brother, Norman.

The family wishes to express extreme gratitude to the staff at Rockwell Community Nursing Home and Hospice of North Iowa who cared for not only their mother, but the family as a whole. Their care and support went beyond measure.

Ward-Van Slyke Colonial Chapel, Clear Lake, was in charge of arrangements.