Mary F. (Nelson) Shaw

Mary was born to Frank and Frances (nee Choquette) Shaw on January 9, 1950, and was raised in Marquette. She attended Marquette Public Schools and graduated from Marquette Senior High School (class of 1968) where she had been a member of the marching band. During the winters, her family would travel to Hollywood, Fla. and she attended Miss Nolan’s Oceanside Academy while they were there. Following high school, she attended Northern Michigan University as a member of the inaugural class of bachelor of science nursing students, earning her registered nurse license.

After college, she moved to McLean, Illinois and worked as a nurse at the local hospital. After about a year, she returned to Marquette to start her family. During her early adulthood in Marquette, she worked at St. Luke’s Hospital/Marquette General Hospital and enjoyed living near her family and friends. In the late seventies, she moved to Port Huron and worked at Port Huron Hospital and St. Clair Community College (as a teacher in their nursing program). In the early nineties, she moved back up to the Marquette area, settling down in Gwinn. She briefly worked at Bell Memorial Hospital in Ishpeming and then found her niche working at St. Francis Hospital in Escanaba for over 20 years in the emergency room.

Mary loved being a nurse. It was the only career she ever wanted, and she got to live her dream by working in that capacity for over 40 years.

As a youth in Marquette, she was active in the Ski Club and loved to ski well into adulthood. She was very active in dance aerobics classes at Court Rooms North in Port Huron and was a member of the Assembly Dance Club. Later in life, Mary enjoyed socializing with friends and family, traveling, making and selling Aunt Lillian’s Mustard and indulging her grandchildren. She took great pride in being a Yooper and loved her “little house in the woods” which had been in her family for over 100 years. She loved the Green Bay Packers, she loved her independence, she loved her friends and family, she loved her life fully and completely.

Despite having a “medically complex history”, she always faced every challenge with a set to her jaw and a positive, can-do attitude that often took others by surprise. While she was a shy child, she grew into an outspoken adult. She loved everyone she met, and they often loved her right back. She was widely known in circles for her sense of adventure, the occasional bizarre circumstantial story of chaos or misunderstanding, her truly “blonde” moments, and her pure joy at meeting new people. The world is a dimmer place without her.

Mary was preceded in death by her parents, her brother Michael Shaw, her niece Karen (Patrick) Parker and her great-nephew Daniel Parker.

She is survived by her sister Kathleen (William) Carr of Kalamazoo, Mich.; her daughter Kate Nelson of Chandler, Ariz.; her son Ryan (Bonnie) Nelson and her grandchildren: Kayden, Dylan, Maddie and Dallas Nelson of Gladstone; cousin Eric Carlson of Canal Fulton, Ohio; niece Kellie Carr of Kalamazoo, Mich.; nephew Steven Shaw of Ishpeming, Mich.; nephew David (Becky) Carr of Spring Hill, Fla.; great-nieces Megan (Tim) Kemink of Hudsonville, Mich., Suzie (Rick) Beaudry of Ishpeming, Mich., Emily Carr of New York, N.Y.; great-nephews Sean (Rachelle) Rourk of West Palm Beach, Fla., Mike (Christi) Parker of Marquette, Mich., Joshua (Shayna) Carr of Spring Hill, Fla.; and a great myriad of great-great nieces and nephews all of whom were her favorite.

Visitation will be at Canale-Gwinn Funeral Home in Gwinn, Mich. on Friday, August 18 at 10 a.m. followed by a service at 11 a.m. Mary’s service will be livestreamed at HYPERLINK “https://my.gather.app/remember/mary-nelson-shaw” https://my.gather.app/remember/mary-nelson-shaw

In lieu of flowers, donations are requested to the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, the American Heart Association or the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.

Memories of Mary may be shared at canalefuneral.com