Rosemary Nelson Hunt, of Phoenix, AZ, passed away peacefully on July 20, 2017. Rosemary is survived by her children, Sandy & Brenda Hubbard, John (Sherrie) Hunt, Roseanna (Jim) Weaver, Teresa (Allen) Cradic, in addition to ten grandchildren, 24 great-grandchildren and a great-great grandchild. She is preceded in death by her husband Elwood Hunt.
Rosemary was born in Phoenix, Arizona to George and Rose Nelson on March 27th, 1930 and was the seventh of nine children. Her father George Nelson built and operated a public swimming pool--Nelson’s Sandy Bottom Pool (39th Street and Thomas). She was swimming in deep water by age three spending much of the summer floating in the cool water and building sand castles with her brother and sisters and many members of the Phoenix community.
She was a devout member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (LDS) and attended services in Phoenix’s First Ward, the first, and at the time, only, LDS church building in Phoenix. She served faithfully in many different positions and Wards in the church over the course of her life including, Relief Society President and Young Women's President.
Rosemary graduated from North Phoenix High School in 1948 where she was a founding member of the Psi Sigma Fraternity. In 1952 she earned a Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education from Brigham Young University and married Elwood Hunt three weeks later. With him they had four children. She went on to teach for over twenty-five years at several different public schools in the Phoenix Elementary School District #1, but spent most of her career at Kenilworth Elementary School where she predominantly taught Kindergarten. In the 1980’s she returned to school to earn a Master’s Degree in Education and an ESL endorsement with an emphasis in the Spanish language from Arizona State University.
In the mid-fifties, with her husband Elwood Hunt, she took over ownership and operation of Nelson’s Pool until 1976 when it closed. At Nelson’s Pool (relocated to 19th Ave and Turney) she taught swimming, lifesaving, and water ballet classes. Nelson’s Pool offered these classes for free, to anyone who wanted them, and her voice could often be heard throughout the neighborhood on early summer mornings, coaching youth participants on their strokes. Swimming, reading, writing children’s books and poetry, and playing piano were some of her many passions. She always had a dog and a garden. She dedicated her life to her family, her faith, and raising four children. She not only cared for her own children but also other family members and friends throughout her life, showing them equal love and kindness.
After retirement, she did volunteer work for the LDS church including leading Camp LoMIA summer camp for girls and tutoring recent immigrants to the U.S. while serving a working mission at Deseret Industries in Sun City, AZ. Rosemary, in her own words, most ardently wanted to “help where I am needed and leave this world a better place because I was a teacher.” She educated over 700 children through the Phoenix public school system and taught thousands of Phoenix youth to swim.
A Memorial Service will be held at Greenwood Memory Lawn Chapel, 719 N 27th Avenue, Phoenix, AZ 85009 at 10 am on July 27, 2017. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to Hospice of the Valley and Barrow Neurological Foundation specifically for Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus (NPH).
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