Earlier this year, the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh lost a dedicated alumna and University champion, and I lost a dear friend and mentor.
Jean C. (Goodwin) Nelson ’49, former UW Oshkosh alumni director, passed away on April 19, at Mercy Medical Center in Oshkosh.
Jean led the UW Oshkosh Alumni Relations Office from 1968 until 1991, overseeing the move to Pollock Alumni House in 1971. She worked alongside Alumni Association board members to personally paint, wallpaper and refurbish the house for campus and alumni use.
During her tenure, Jean expanded alumni services and added programs, including a University Day for Women. She was known for being well-read and having a quick mind, knowing the names and graduation years of alumni by heart.
Jean’s contributions to the University and community were immeasurable.
In addition, I personally had the privilege to learn and grow in my own service as UW Oshkosh alumni director through my friendship with Jean. She was genuinely interested in people and their lives and was masterful at creating and sustaining relationships. I’ve strived to learn from her example.
I feel so fortunate that I had the opportunity to sit down with Jean, prior to her passing, to interview her about her own life and her vast knowledge of UW Oshkosh history.
In her own words, Jean explained her UW Oshkosh connections: “Because I was a townie … my mother went to the Normal School, I went to a lot of things up on the campus as a youngster. And then I went to school here, and I was on many committees. Then, I became the alumni director in 1968, probably because I had been so involved.”
From Jean, I learned the importance of honoring our institutional history as well as our own personal histories.
She said, “We really appreciate the past, and we realize that we are standing on the shoulders of those who went before us. I hope the present generation doesn’t forget that.”
I, for one, will never forget Jean’s message.
Check out excerpts from Chris Gantner’s interview with Jean Nelson.
Jean Nelson: Our Start as a Normal School
http://uwosh.edu/engage-online/wp-content/uploads/2011_4.1_Nelson_1.flvJean Nelson: Famous Alumni
http://uwosh.edu/engage-online/wp-content/uploads/2011_4.1_Nelson_2.flvJean Nelson: Top Teachers
http://uwosh.edu/engage-online/wp-content/uploads/2011_4.1_Nelson_3.flvJean Nelson: Nurturing Students
http://uwosh.edu/engage-online/wp-content/uploads/2011_4.1_Nelson_4.flv
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6 Comments
I worked with Jean Nelson on the Senior Steering Committee when I was a Senior at UW-O in 1977. She was a marvelous person. It was an honor and a gift from God to have known her. UW-O was fortunate to have her for their Alumni Director for so may years. Jean was always so respectful of the faculty and students. And, she always had a great sense of humor. We could be working on an event and just buried in the last minute details and she would say something that would crack us all up and relieve the stress. We all just loved her dearly. She is greatly missed! We had an angel in our midst!
I couldn’t have said it better than Kathryn’s comment above.
I was a student at UW-O in 1972 when I did work-study at Pollack Alumni House. Prior to working, I was encouraged to meet Jean Nelson, the alumni house director. Jean was very welcoming and gave me a tour of Pollack Alumni House along with its rich history. From that day on, it was a joy to work for Jean. She always began my work-study days with, “Before you begin Victoria, come sit down and tell me what’s new in your life? What movies have you seen lately? What books are you reading? What’s your favorite class at UW-Oshkosh?” We would chat in her office and Jean truly took a sincere interest in my life and I still treasure those “what’s new?” conversations these many years later. Jean was a joy to work for and her sense of humor, her glamour and sophistication and her vast knowledge of UW-O history made it great fun to be a work-study at Pollack. She was a great mentor. And UW-O was blessed to have her as director of Pollack Alumni House. I sincerely know that I was blessed to work for Jean but also to have known this remarkable woman.
Thanks for doing the great interview with Jean and posting it. She was a wonderful woman and a great link with the university for so many of us alumni. I have very fond memories of Jean and her husband Phil.
I had the good fortune of knowing and working with Jean for many years, first as a student on the Senior Steering Committee and then as a member of the Alumni Association Board of Directors. I often told her she should write a book to capture the hundreds (perhaps thousands!) of anecdotes and memories she shared as Alumni Director. I swear she knew EVERY alum by heart! Thank you for including the interview…..it was wonderful to hear her voice again. She truly has left a legacy of memories for many alumni and friends of UW-Oshkosh. She and Phil are fondly remembered and dearly missed.
I started working for Jean at the Alumni Office in 1968. Victoria Bolz has beautifully expressed my own sentiments. Jean’s caring interest in my personal as well as academic life was invaluable to me. The office printing was done by a young man on an old, complicated machine. When he left, I took his job, for which he had been paid twice my wage. When I told Jean I thought it was unfair that I continue to receive the lesser wage, she didn’t miss a beat. “You’re righ”, she said, and gave me a raise. This was at the beginning of the women’s movement, and Jean was clearly ahead of her time. I am so fortunate to have had her in my life.