Kenneth E. Nelson of Aston passed away at home on June 22 with his wife and daughter at his side. He was 69 years old and leaves a void for all who knew and loved him. He was the son of the late Paul and Eloise Nelson.
Upon graduation from Sun Valley High School, Ken joined the Navy. He was a carpenter with Assault Craft Unit 2 and spent 8 months in the Mediterranean. He volunteered to go to Vietnam where he was a Fire Crew Chief in Chu Lai. Ken used the G.I. Bill to attend and graduate from Cheyney University. During his career, he taught high school industrial arts, had his own remodeling business and worked for other companies as a master carpenter.
For the last 19 years, Ken has been the carpentry instructor at Williamson College of the Trades. It became much more than a job as he taught and mentored his students. After Hurricane Katrina, with the coordination of Cityteam Ministries, Ken took roughly 50 Williamson students to Bay St. Louis three years in a row during Christmas break to reconstruct homes. Several of Ken’s students participated in the skills competition on a local, state and national level. Seven students won the gold medal in the nationals. Ken earned his private pilot’s license and spent many hours flying with friends from Brandywine Airport.
Ken is survived by his wife, Patricia (Connolly) Nelson; his daughter Kate and her husband Jim Gilmer; his two grandsons, Aidan and Ben Gilmer; 2 brothers, William and David Nelson. He was predeceased by his daughter, Beth.
His funeral service will be celebrated on Monday, June 27th at 10:30am at the Carr Funeral Home 935 S. Providence Rd. (Rte. 320) Wallingford, PA. Friends and family are invited to call on Sunday evening from 6pm-8pm and again on Monday morning from 9:30-10:30am at the funeral home. Burial will follow in SS Peter and Paul Cemetery. Ken volunteered at Christmas for Cityteam Ministries, so in Lieu of flowers, the family requests donations in his name to this organization at 634 Sproul St., Chester, PA 19013.
Upon graduation from Sun Valley High School, Ken joined the Navy. He was a carpenter with Assault Craft Unit 2 and spent 8 months in the Mediterranean. He volunteered to go to Vietnam where he was a Fire Crew Chief in Chu Lai. Ken used the G.I. Bill to attend and graduate from Cheyney University. During his career, he taught high school industrial arts, had his own remodeling business and worked for other companies as a master carpenter.
For the last 19 years, Ken has been the carpentry instructor at Williamson College of the Trades. It became much more than a job as he taught and mentored his students. After Hurricane Katrina, with the coordination of Cityteam Ministries, Ken took roughly 50 Williamson students to Bay St. Louis three years in a row during Christmas break to reconstruct homes. Several of Ken’s students participated in the skills competition on a local, state and national level. Seven students won the gold medal in the nationals. Ken earned his private pilot’s license and spent many hours flying with friends from Brandywine Airport.
Ken is survived by his wife, Patricia (Connolly) Nelson; his daughter Kate and her husband Jim Gilmer; his two grandsons, Aidan and Ben Gilmer; 2 brothers, William and David Nelson. He was predeceased by his daughter, Beth.
His funeral service will be celebrated on Monday, June 27th at 10:30am at the Carr Funeral Home 935 S. Providence Rd. (Rte. 320) Wallingford, PA. Friends and family are invited to call on Sunday evening from 6pm-8pm and again on Monday morning from 9:30-10:30am at the funeral home. Burial will follow in SS Peter and Paul Cemetery. Ken volunteered at Christmas for Cityteam Ministries, so in Lieu of flowers, the family requests donations in his name to this organization at 634 Sproul St., Chester, PA 19013.