Laurie was born in North Carolina where her father was based as a marine and moved to Santa Barbara with her family when she was a young girl. She graduated from Santa Barbara High School in 1971. She married Phil Nelson in 1980 and they lived in Santa Barbara until 1996 before they moved to Lake Tahoe. Her time in Santa Barbara was spent enjoying the beach and time with her husband. Laurie had an engaging smile and loved to laugh. In Lake Tahoe she worked for Caesars for many years in hospitality, a job she thoroughly enjoyed. She loved to meet all the famous people who came through. She especially liked Red Skeleton who she escorted every time he did his show. Laurie got along with everyone. After Phil retired from the Forest Service, she and her husband grew tired of dealing with the snow. Phil and Laurie moved to Boise Idaho, where Phil took a job working for Hunot Retardant and where they purchased a quaint country home. With the help of her sister-in-law Dundie, Laurie learned how to create glass yard art and eventually started her own business. She was extremely proud of this new venture. Boise offered her and Phil wonderful night life experiences, bike riding along the green belt and taking walks with their pugs. Especially Laurie’s pug Cricket, who hung in there along with Laurie to the end. Each January, Laurie and Phil would travel to Hawaii to take in the Pro Bowl and savor the warmer climate for a few weeks. While Phil played golf, Laurie enjoyed perusing the flea markets and shops of Kona. Their trips to Hawaii was always the high point of the year. Six years ago, Laurie collapsed from a massive heart attack and was clinically dead for five minutes. She believed her survival was so that she could be around when her husband grew ill in 2018 and she was there to help him through before he passed away in September of same year. Though Laurie had her own medical conditions to deal with, she felt strongly that Phil wanted her to fight, and Laurie did, right up to the end. They are now both happy to be reunited again.
Laurie was preceded in death by her husband Phil and her mother Ellen. She’s survived by her step-son Shawn Nelson, his wife Katie and children Blake and Maggie. Her sister and brother-in-law Dundie and Henry Schulte and their children Amber and Marya. And niece Tori and nephew Ian.
