{"id":1381,"date":"2026-09-30T09:58:52","date_gmt":"2026-09-30T16:58:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lubean.org\/classof67\/?page_id=1381"},"modified":"2026-10-22T11:36:51","modified_gmt":"2026-10-22T18:36:51","slug":"teresa-rose-nelson","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/lubean.org\/classof67\/teresa-rose-nelson\/","title":{"rendered":"Teresa Rose Nelson"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Teresa Ann (Rose) Nelson<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

November 19, 1948 \u2014 September 28, 2026<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tempe, Arizona<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Teresa Ann \u201cTess\u201d Nelson, born Teresa Ann Rose, passed away on September 28, 2026, in Tempe, Arizona. She was born on November 19, 1948, in Richland, Washington, where her father was working as a welder on a dam project. Not long afterward, the family returned to Utah, home to both of her parents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Teresa graduated from Morgan County High School, where she sang and played the cornet, and later attended Weber State College. There, she sang in a triple trio, something she dearly loved, and met Byron William Nelson. Teresa and Byron married on November 27, 1968. When their oldest children, Tami and Matt, were young, the family moved to Scottsdale, Arizona, where they raised their family. Teresa and Byron divorced in 2004. In 2005, she moved to Tempe, where she made her home for the remainder of her life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tess\u2019s life was marked by creativity, humor, faith, music, and an enduring curiosity about the world around her. Music remained an important part of her life. Her study of music in high school and college laid the foundation for a lifelong love of music. She was often asked to sing at funerals, though she liked to joke that people only asked her to sing once they were \u201cgone,\u201d so perhaps they knew something she didn\u2019t. She served as a ward organist for more years than anyone could count, and directing the choir was one of her favorite church callings. Her love of music also found expression in her work, as she organized concert tours for bands and orchestras throughout Europe and in Washington, D.C., including performances in famous and historic cathedrals across Europe. Among the many places she loved, Prague held a special place in her heart.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tess was creative, intelligent, resourceful, and full of life. She had a wonderful sense of humor and a song always close at hand. It seemed she could hardly have a conversation without a tune coming to mind. She believed firmly that \u201cthere\u2019s always a solution, you just haven\u2019t thought of it yet,\u201d and approached life with that same determination and ingenuity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She was an avid reader, especially of nonfiction, and loved studying the gospel. Those who learned from her knew her as a gifted teacher of scripture and doctrine. Her faith was deeply important to her, and she found great satisfaction in learning, teaching, and sharing what she knew.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tess loved camping, traveling, walking, especially at the Phoenix Zoo, and exploring wherever curiosity took her. She enjoyed Pinochle and loved teaching her children and grandchildren to play. In her younger years, she was an athlete who especially enjoyed softball, and her artistic talents included oil painting and rhino beetles (a.k.a. elephants that looked nothing like elephants).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She was also an excellent cook, just like her mother, and rarely needed a recipe. She appreciated a good roast with mashed potatoes and gravy, a truly good hamburger, gelato, dark chocolate, M&Ms, and, preferably, something sweet after every meal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tess brought imagination and fun to everyday life. She loved holidays, especially Christmas and Halloween, and had a gift for turning ordinary traditions into something memorable. Her creativity, humor, resourcefulness, and willingness to try something new made life with Tess anything but dull.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tess was proud of her children and grandchildren and especially pleased to see her sons and grandchildren serve missions for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and her children marry in the temple. She was also crowned Morgala Days Rodeo Queen in 1967.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tess is survived by her children: Tamara Nelson; Matthew Nelson (Melissa Maxwell) of Cedar City, Utah, and their children Tyler, Jake, Wade, and Andee; Adam Nelson (Caroline Francis) of Silver City, Ohio, and their children Nathan, Cali, Aaron, Wyatt, Hannah, and Ivy; Shirley \u201cNiki\u201d Johnson (Jeff Johnson) of Charlotte, North Carolina, and their children Hayden Conn, Allie Carter, Mylie, Stetson, Tuff, and Quinnley; and Timothy Nelson (Laura Belnap) of Ogden, and their children Madi, Grant, and Hank.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She was preceded in death by her father, Stanley Edison Rose, and her mother, Betty Jean Rose.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A funeral will be held on Thursday, October 8, 2026, at 11:00 a.m. at the West Porterville Church, 2700 S. Morgan Valley Drive, Morgan, Utah. A viewing will be held prior to the funeral from 9:30 to 10:30 a.m. at the church.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Interment will be in the North Morgan Cemetery.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Teresa will be remembered for her music, her faith, her intelligence, her laughter, her creativity, and her unmistakable way of approaching life. She lived with courage, curiosity, humor, and determination, and left behind a lifetime of memories, music, and stories.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n