Darrell V. Nielsen

Darrell V. Nielsen, 81, of Mason City, passed away Tuesday, January 1, 2013, at Hospice of North Iowa. Memorial services will be held at 11:00 AM on Saturday, January 5, 2013, at the First United Methodist Church, 119 South Georgia Ave., with Pastor Sean McRoberts officiating, joined by Pastor Jim Stiles. Inurnment will be held at a later date. A gathering of family and friends will be held from 4:00 PM to 6:00 PM Friday, January 4, 2013 at Major Erickson Funeral Home, 111 N. Pennsylvania Ave. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be directed to the First United Methodist Church or Hospice of North Iowa. Darrell Virgil Nielsen was born January 23, 1931, the son of Andrew and Hilda (Goetsch) Nielsen. Darrell graduated from LuVerne High School in 1948 and enlisted in the National Guard. He attended DeVry University, Chicago, Illinois, graduating with a degree in Television Engineering. He married Judy K. Pugh on October 9, 1954 in Chicago. He later attended Mason City Junior College. Darrell worked as an Engineer at KGLO Television in Mason City for 17 years. His passion was farming, which he did part-time while working at KGLO, then farmed full-time until his retirement in 2004. Darrell was a member of the First United Methodist Church where he served on multiple committees and as a trustee. He was a board member of the Iowa Soybean Association and earned the Soybean Leadership Award. He was also a member of the Corn Growers Association, along with the Evening Lions Club, serving as a past president. In addition, Darrell served on boards for the Farmers Elevator in Clear Lake and North Iowa Hockey, along with coaching hockey and volunteering with his son’s Boy Scout Troup. He enjoyed golfing, family vacations, boating, spending time at their ‘cabin’ on Clear Lake, playing cribbage and other games with family and friends. Darrell was a loving, gentle person, whose passion for life compelled him to serve as a “Life’s Teacher” for which his family will be ever grateful. He valued the time he spent with his family and friends and will be dearly missed by all who knew and loved him. He is survived by his wife, Judy, of fifty-eight years; children, Kris Corl and husband Tom of Steamboat Springs, Colorado/Belize, Julie Ebeling and friend Kurt Lichty of Mason City, Jim Nielsen and wife Debbie of Muskegon, Michigan; grandchildren, Jake, Eric, Sarah (husband Shawn), Amy (husband Aaron), Ricky, Jamie, Tamie (husband Monty) and Sara (husband Kyle); great-grandchildren, Anna, Mikayla, Kaiden, Brynn, Ryen, Leo and numerous nieces and nephews. His parents, sister Dorothy and her husband, Howard and son-in-law, Dick Ebeling, preceded him in death.

Cemetery:
Inurnment will be held at a later date.

In lieu of flowers memorials may be directed to the First United Methodist Church or Hospice of North Iowa.

Visitation:
A gathering of family and friends will be held from 4:00 PM to 6:00 PM Friday, January 4, 2013 at Major Erickson Funeral Home, 111 N. Pennsylvania Ave.

Service:
Memorial services will be held at 11:00 A.M., on Saturday, January 5, 2013, at the First United Methodist Church, 119 South Georgia Ave., with Pastor Sean McRoberts and Pastor Jim Stiles officiating.