Mary Lois Nelson

Mary Lois Nelson, age 98 passed away on August 3, 2025 at Northridge Village in Ames, Iowa. A memorial will be held at 1:30 P.M. on Wednesday Augst 13, 2025 in the Chapel at Northridge Village; 3300 George Washington Carver, Ames.

Mary Lois was born on a farm north of Hampton, Iowa on August 2, 1927 to Blanche Roemer Nelson and Gust W. Nelson.  She attended Hampton public schools, graduating in 1945.  Mary Lois then enrolled at Iowa State Teachers College where she earned a two-year degree and then later her B.A. after which she attended the University of Texas Graduate School of Library Science.

During her professional career she taught in elementary schools in Osage, IA and Merservey, IA.  She then worked as a cataloger at Scott County Library in Eldridge, IA. With that knowledge she moved to work as a Technical Services Librarian with the Iowa State Traveling Library in Des Moines.  

Her next move was to Anoka County Minnesota to help establish a library there and became the Head of Technical Services supervising the processing of books for several Minnesota libraries.  Her final librarian position was Assistant Librarian in Council Bluffs Public Library.  

After her career Mary Lois chose to retire in Ames Iowa, volunteering daily at WOI Radio for 18 years.  She also occasionally volunteered at Mary Greeley Hospital in their gift shop.

Mary Lois qualified for lifetime memberships in the American Library Association and the Iowa Library Association.  She was a member of the United Methodist Church since 1940 and joined the congregations and women’s groups wherever she lived.  

During her long and healthy life, Mary Lois enjoyed reading, researching information, classical music and getting to know relatives and friends.  She was an avid traveler and visited all 50 of the United States and several countries in Europe, her favorite being Sweden where her father was born and raised.

She is survived by her niece, Laurie Nelson Schlachtenhaufen and three nephews, Alan Borcherding, Glen Borcherding, Tom Nelson and several great nieces and nephews. Those who predeceased Mary Lois are her parents, Gust and Blanche Nelson, her brother, Harold Gust Nelson, her sister Sylvia Borcherding, niece Wendy Jo Nelson Maupin and nephew Gary Borcherding.

To have known her, was to Love her.