Marion Nelms

Funeral services for Mr. Marion DeLoy Nelms, age 90 of Cookeville and formerly of Nashville, will be held Sunday, October 16th at 3 p.m. at Spring Hill Funeral Home in Nashville. Interment with military honors will follow in Spring Hill Cemetery. Dr. Jonathan Nelms of Covenant Church, Cookeville, and Dr. Kevin Shrum of Inglewood Baptist Church, Nashville, will officiate. Mr. Nelms's family will receive friends Saturday from 5 p.m. until 8 p.m. at the Cookeville Chapel of Hooper-Huddleston & Horner Funeral Home and again Sunday from 1 p.m. until service time at Spring Hill Funeral Home. Mr. Nelms died Wednesday, October 12, 2016 at Life Care Center of Sparta. He was born June 15, 1926 in Black Oak, Arkansas to the late Robert Clinton and Edna Lou Huckaby Nelms. He was a 1944 graduate of Osceola High School, Arkansas. He served his country as a sailor in the US Navy as a Fireman First Class in the South Pacific during World War II and continued to serve in the US Naval Reserve until 1952. In 1949, he earned a diploma in Machine Drafting and Design from Industrial Training Institute, Chicago. He moved to Nashville in 1955 and was employed for 35 years as a machine designer for Dupont Chemical in Old Hickory. He was a member of Inglewood Baptist Church for 54 years, serving as chairman of deacons, Sunday School teacher, and president of the Sanctuary Choir. An avid train enthusiast, he was a member of the National Railway Historical Society and an active volunteer with the Tennessee Central Railway Museum. Mr. Nelms and his wife proudly served as car hosts on the TCRM dome car on excursion trips from Nashville to Monterey. He also volunteered with DuPont's Fun with Science education team for 13 years following his retirement in 1991. He and his wife Ann moved to Cookeville in 2014 and joined the fellowship of Covenant Church. His mind remained sharp and he lived an active life until his recent illness. In the past year he even served as president of the residents' council while residing at Life Care Center of Sparta. In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by half-brother, Robert Gerald Nelms; half-sister, Zealand Harris; and sisters-in-law, Ruby Owens, Florence (Artis) Thompson, Sadie Carr, and Gladys Josephine (Amos) Davidson. He is survived by his adoring family, his wife of 66 years, Ann Owen Nelms (whom he married February 4, 1950 in Mt Pleasant, TN); son, Dr. Jonathan Nelms and wife Glenda of Cookeville; daughters, Cynthia Lynn Nelms of Mobile, AL and Susan Gwynn Plank of Bois D'Arc, MO; grandsons, Nathanael Nelms and John Philip Nelms; sister-in-law, Billiej (Wayne, deceased) Boshers of Nashville; nieces and nephew, Nancy Davidson, Art (Ellen) Thompson, Marsha (James) Woody, and Patti (Patrick) Lyons; and family friend Julie Hornady. Nathan and John Philip Nelms, James Woody, Art Thompson, Mike Burgess, and Allen Tuten will serve as pallbearers. Memorial contributions may be made to Covenant Church, 354 S. Jefferson Ave., Cookeville, TN 38501. Hooper-Huddleston & Horner Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements (931)526-6111. You may share your thoughts and memories at www.hhhfunerals.com.