Carmen Mary Nelson Atwood

CARMEN MARY NELSON ATWOOD
July 4, 1948 ~ June 18, 2022
On June 18, 2022, as Carmen Atwood battled cancer, she peacefully graduated to her next estate
surrounded by her two sons, Nathaniel (Nate) Delmen Atwood (February 26, 1988) and Alexander
(Zander) Cardell Atwood (June 15, 1989). She was born in Ogden, Utah on July 4, 1948, to Mary Joan
Gabey and Volney DeForges Nelson.
Carmen graduated in Ogden, Utah from Bonneville High in 1966, and after working four years at the
Defense Depot in Ogden, she earned enough money to attend BYU. She graduated in 1974 with a Bachelor
of Science degree in Elementary Education. She taught 1st grade for 12 years (1975-1987) at a private
school in Kaysville, Utah as well as for 26 years (1987-2013) at Longview Elementary in the Murray
School District. Carmen was a lifelong student and loved learning. One of her greatest joys as a teacher
was reading stories to her students. When she retired in 2013, she worked six more years as a substitute
teacher.
She fell in love with Dellas Movell Atwood (February 20, 1921) after meeting him at a Single Adult’s
dance, and they were married June 21, 1986 and later sealed in the Salt Lake Temple on June 19, 1987.
They were married 19 years until his death on March 6, 2005.
Carmen was a lifelong member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and enjoyed serving in
many callings. She served as a Primary teacher, librarian, choir member, and Primary Nursery leader.
She also served as an instructor at the nearby Care Center where she made many friends. She spent hours
reading and studying scriptures, especially the Book of Isaiah with her sister Fran. She also loved doing
Genealogy and Indexing for the church, and many will be there to meet on the other side to thank her for
this work.
She loved the United States of America dearly and would never miss an opportunity to demonstrate her
patriotism. She was a strong member of many patriotic organizations including the John Birch Society.
Traveling was one of Carmen’s favorite things to do, especially going back to her ancestor’s homelands in
England and Germany. A large amount of her summer vacations would take place on the Oregon Coast
with her two boys. All year she would look forward to smelling the ocean air and walking on the beach.
She also loved to play games, and you could find her playing Skipbo at Burger King with Nate. Most of all,
Carmen enjoyed crocheting thousands of washcloths, crocheting borders on baby blankets and burp
cloths, and knitting baby hats for the Hospital NICU. Building a cozy home was important to her. She
loved to fill her home with treasures that she found during her travels or from the antique hunting trips
she had with her sister Flo.
We will deeply miss Carmen and her sense of humor, and we look forward to the day we get to see her
again. Carmen is preceded in death by her husband, Dellas (2005), parents, and brother, Kevin Dale
Nelson (2016). She is survived by her two sons: Nathaniel, Murray, UT; Alexander (Alison), Germany.
Siblings: LaVern Belle Miller, Alaska; Mariechen Joan Goff, Clinton, UT; Ralph DeForges (Janice) Nelson,
Ogden, UT; Florence Maureen (Dave) Jones, Newton, UT; Frances Colleen (Halbert) Christensen,
Springville, UT.
Service Information
Viewing June 26, 2022 at 6:00 to 8:00 PM
3400 S 1100 E Millcreek





Viewing June 27, 2022 at 10:00 AM
3400 S 1100 E Millcreek





Funeral Service
June 27, 2022 at 11:00 AM
3400 S 1100 E Millcreek