Sidney Lee Nelson, 83, passed away August 27, 2026 at Badger Mountain Adult Home with his children, Deana and Philip, by his side. He was born August 22, 1943 in St Ignatius, Montana to Philip and Gladys Nelson and was the 4th of six children Kay, Zoe, Bert, Lee, Gaye, and Rodney.

Lee spent most of his childhood in western Montana. He started elementary school at St Ignatius Grade School. He liked school, was an avid reader, good at math, and basketball.

In 1959, the family sold their home in Missoula Montana and moved to eastern Washington where they purchased a farm in Eltopia. It took years to make the desert land productive. During this time, Lee attended Pasco High School where he graduated in 1961.

Following high school, he served in the U.S. Army for 2 years stationed in Germany about 25 miles from Wiesbaden in a Cold War missile unit, part of the U.S. Army’s Air Defense Artillery mission supporting missile readiness and nuclear deterrence operations.

He returned home from the army, joined the active reserves, and started classes at Columbia Basin Community College majoring in Mathematics hoping to become a math teacher. In 1966 with the unexpected passing of his father, Lee left CBC to help his mom with the farm.

While attending CBC, he met Karen Balcentine whom he married on February 25, 1967. They purchased the farm from his mother and Lee started a career in farming that lasted for over 50 years. Lee and Karen were married for 16 years and had two children Deana Rae Nelson was born in 1969 and Philip Lee Nelson was born in 1971.

Farming was hard work with long days and lots of risks. He mainly grew alfalfa with the occasional peas or wheat. He had a short stint raising market hogs but decided it was too dangerous as they occasionally escaped and would chase their young kids around the yard.

He enjoyed hunting deer, elk, pheasant, and fishing especially for steelhead on the Columbia River near the Vernita Bridge. He loved the mountains and would retreat to places like Omak, the Kootenays, or back home to western Montana. He loved games and would often win, a trait we believe he inherited from his mother. He was a man of few words but liked to joke and tease. Every year he would spend days collecting walnuts from the tree his father planted in the farm’s front yard carefully shelling them into bags as gifts for friends and family. His grandkids loved Papa’s Nuts a reference, that out of context, made him and everyone else laugh.

He leaves behind his children Deana Nelson and Philip Lee Nelson, his grandchildren Benjamin Fuller and Sydney Lee Fuller (named after her Papa Lee), great grandson Daylon Cline, and his siblings Zoe Gordon, Gaye Laughery, and Rod Nelson.

A memorial service will be held on Sept 19th at 10:00am at City View Cemetery, 1500 N Oregon Ave, Pasco, WA.

Special thanks to the caregivers at Badger Mountain Adult Home, who kept the candy bowl stocked knowing he would raid, fought for hospice care when he needed it most, and stayed by his side until we arrived. Their compassion and good humor made his final years feel like home and his passing full of love and peace.

To honor his dedication to the American Legion community, memorial gifts may be sent to the American Legion Post #34, PO Box 2571, Pasco, WA 99301. Please note “In memory of Lee Nelson. In care of the honor guard. ” on the donation.

“Okie dokie. It’s time to go.”