Mary Lucille Nelson

Mary was born in Ferris, Texas, south of Dallas. She grew up in a very large family, the fifth of eighteen children. She was the daughter of a sharecropper who grew cotton. Times were difficult, and there was very little money, but she learned how to pick cotton, grow gardens, can the produce, and cook. Mary and her siblings learned how to survive, and they got through the Great Depression. During World War II, Mary worked in an airplane factory near Fort Worth, TX. She was tiny enough to crawl into the small spaces and install wiring in the aircraft. She later joined the United States Coast Guard and was stationed in Mobile, AL, where she met her future husband, John E. Nelson. She always said that her time in the Coast Guard was the best time in her life.

John and Mary married after the war, and they made their home and raised their children in New Roads, Louisiana. John opened and operated a Dodge dealership with his father, J.E. Nelson Motor Company, and a few years later, Mary opened a beauty salon in her home. Mary lived in New Roads and operated her beauty shop from around 1960 until 1995 when she decided to retire and move closer to relatives. She moved finally to The Woodlands, TX in 2005 to be near her son and his family, but she always thought of New Roads as home. She missed her house and missed her friends.

Mary’s passion was baking. She made the absolute best German Chocolate cakes, lemon pies, peach cobblers, and pound cakes. The list is long. She will be dearly missed by those that loved her and loved her cooking. God bless her.

Mary was preceded in death by her father, Hugh Fowler, her mother, Suda Reeves, her husband, John E. Nelson, her daughter, Diana Lynn Nelson Maggio, her brothers James Fowler, Hugh Fowler, Jr., Calvin Fowler, Gene Fowler, Jack Fowler, and Jerry Fowler, her sisters Christine Stillwell, Pauline Griffin, Ulma Chastain, Virginia Fowler, Dorothy Johnson, Caroline Sandell, and Geraldine Vaun.

She is survived by her son, John S. Nelson II, grandchildren Jon Christian Maggio, Wesley Anne Nelson, Zachary John Nelson, Cassie Lynn Nelson, Samuel Brian Nelson, great grandchildren Diana Lynn Maggio, Cole Oufnac, Griffin Oufnac, Aimee Oufnac, Allie Lucas, Anthony Lucas, brother Frank Fowler, and sisters Minnie Bynum, Joanne Peiradore, and Judy Shields.

Services for Mary will take place at 2:00pm, December 11, 2021, at Forest Park Funeral Home and Cemetery, located at 18000 I-45 South, The Woodlands, TX 77384. They can be contacted at 936-321-5115. Their website is forestparkthewoodlands.com