Helen E. Nelson

Helen Elizabeth deLasse Nelson, 84, a retired social worker, entered into eternal rest November 19, 2013, following a life of love, faith and service. The relatives and friends of Helen Elizabeth deLasse Nelson are invited to attend her Mass of Christian Burial at 10:30 AM Monday, November 25, 2013, from St. Joseph Catholic Church, 1695 Wallenberg Blvd., Charleston. The Rite of Committal will follow at Holy Cross Cemetery on James Island. The family will receive friends Sunday between 3:00 & 6:00 PM at the James A. McAlister Funeral Home, 1620 Savannah Highway, Charleston. The Rosary will be recited at 5:30 PM. Helen was born February 27, 1929 on her beloved Staten Island, NY, a daughter of Luis and Lillian McDonnell deLasse. Helen survived the Great Depression and became a top stenographer and typist for the New York City Department of Marine and Aviation, where she met many lifelong friends. During World War II, she met her soul mate, John T. (J.T.) Nelson, a Tennessee farm boy who was stationed with the Army at Fort Wadsworth, Staten Island. They were married more than 40 years until his death in 1993. Helen was a devoted daughter who took care of her parents and other elderly relatives on Staten Island while raising her own three children with John. She sold real estate for a time, then went to college at night and received a bachelor's degree in social work at age 50. She helped many families as a social worker with the Salvation Army's Stapleton Corps on Staten Island. She created and ran the agency's Kiddie Klub to help preschoolers get a jump on education. She received a community service award from the Salvation Army for her dedicated work. Helen was a faithful member of St. Peter's Roman Catholic Church while on Staten Island, and of Charleston's St. Joseph Catholic Church, where she was a former member of the choir. She was also a former member of the Shepherd Center and had been a volunteer reader at St. Andrews Creative Arts Elementary School. Not ones to sit back and relax, even during retirement in Charleston, Helen and John delivered newspapers for a time. Helen loved to talk to people, so she had many cherished friends and extended family. She will be forever loved by her three devoted children: Stephen (Mary) of Michigan, Richard (Carolyn) of Connecticut, and Laura A. Bradshaw of Charleston; 8 adoring grandchildren: Thomas (Emily), Daniel, Elizabeth, Emily and John Nelson, and Logan, Ethan and Jared Bradshaw; her first great-grandchild, Sophia Nelson; a brother, Max deLasse of Staten Island; beloved in-laws in Cookeville, TN, and a large extended family in California and Mexico. Memorial donations may be made to St. Joseph Catholic Church, 1695 Wallenberg Road, Charleston, SC 29407.