Marcelle Nelson

Marcelle Dozier Nelson, 89, of Fort Smith, went to be with her Lord and Savior on April 17, 2013. She was born Aug. 20, 1923, to Lawrence "Scat" and Ruth Bryan Dozier in Gurdon, Ark. Her family later moved to Texarkana, where she graduated with honors from Texarkana High School and completed her professional training in business college. On Dec. 17, 1941, she married Shelton Ross Nelson, who then left to serve in the U.S. Marine Corps during World War II. Marcelle supported the war effort by working at the Proving Ground facility in Hope. When reunited, the couple moved to Fayetteville, where Ross graduated from the University of Arkansas School of Law, then joined the U.S. Army JAG Corps, beginning a challenging career and life of extensive travel around the U.S. and overseas. In 1972, the couple retired and moved home to Arkansas, settling in the Little Rock area where Marcelle was a member of the United Methodist Church, taught Sunday school, and assisted with a wide variety of other ministry activities through the years. She enjoyed gardening, sewing, fishing, dancing, bowling, bridge, travel, and serving as a volunteer leader in a number of different organizations. After she was widowed in 2005, Marcelle moved to Fort Smith to be near family. Marcelle is survived by three children, their spouses, and five grand-children. Son, Larry and Jan of Fort Smith; son, Rick Nelson and Mae Chan of in Sunnyvale, Calif., and daughter, Linda Nelson Bridoux and Jean Claude of Bartlesville, Okla. Grandchildren are Dr. David B. Nelson and wife Jessica Konvicka Nelson of Dallas, Texas; David R. Nelson of Colo.; Brigitte Belle Bridoux, currently of R.I.; Jeannette Elise Bridoux, a student at UA Fayetteville; and Charlotte Marcelle Bridoux, a minor. Marcelle will be buried with her husband at the National Cemetery in Fort Smith. Funeral services were directed by Edwards Funeral Home. The family requests the dedication of memorial gifts in lieu of flowers, preferably to the Arkansas Division of the American Cancer Society, the Arkansas Retired Military Association or the Arkansas Disabled Veterans Association.