Jimmie Portia (Hammons) Nelson, age 88, of Berryville, Arkansas, was born Sunday, November 17, 1929, on the family homestead in the Snow Community. She was the second of three children of Jay Clark and Vica Pearl (DeWeese) Hammons. She departed this life at home Sunday, August 26, 2018, surrounded by her family. The family moved to the California Monterey Bay area in the mid 1930’s and then back to Berryville in 1945 where she graduated from Berryville High School in 1947. On October 5, 1947, she was united in marriage with Charles M. Nelson. They loved to travel and had been to six continents. They especially enjoyed fishing for salmon and halibut in Alaska. Jimmie was a licensed funeral director and former co-owner of Nelson Funeral Service with her husband Charles and former co-owner of the Berryville Smart Shop with her daughter Sherry. She was a member of the First Christian Church and the Daughters of the American Revolution going back to the Revolutionary War on three sides of her family. She worked with the Carroll County Queen contestants for several years, helped with the Girl and Boy Scouts and was a former member of the Business and Professional Women’s Club and the Aesthetic Club. She loved animals and little children.
She is survived by three daughters and their spouses, Sherry French of Berryville; Carla Thurman and Bobby of Eureka Springs; Andre Nelson and Lisa Ramirez of Eureka Springs; daughter-in-law, Kathy Nelson of Berryville; four grandchildren, Brent Pinkley of Branson, Missouri; Bobby Thurman and wife, Christy of Eureka Springs; Angela Durham and husband, Chip of Cave Springs, Arkansas; Justin Nelson of Corpus Christi, Texas; eight great-grandchildren, Macey and Blaine Nelson, Olivia and Ava Thurman, Carlee, Ty, Jordan and Trevor Durham; sister-in-law, Barbara Baldwin of Casa Grande, Arizona; numerous other relatives, loved ones and friends.
She was preceded in death by her husband, Charles M. Nelson; her son, Douglas Blake Nelson; grandsons, Blake Nelson and Brandon Pinkley; parents, Jay and Pearl Hammons; brothers, Jay Clark Hammons, Jr. and David William Hammons; and son-in-law, Jack French.
A special thank you to those who helped care for Jimmie, Jenny Moroles, Tamara Collier, Emily Kidwell, Laurel Ashworth, Katie Swofford and Hospice of the Hills.
Visitation was held Wednesday, August 29, 2018, with funeral service held Thursday, August 30, 2018, at the Charles M. Nelson Memorial Chapel. Interment followed at the Berryville Memorial Park Cemetery under the direction of Nelson Funeral Service. Memorial donations may be made to First Christian Church, PO Box 187, Berryville, AR 72616 or Alzheimer’s Arkansas, 201 Markham Center Drive, Little Rock, AR 72205. Online condolences may be sent to the family at nelsonfuneral.com. © Nelson Funeral Service, Inc. 2018.