Shirley Jean Nelson

1941 - 2023

Shirley Jean (Baty) Nelson

Sept. 27, 1941 - April 2, 2023

TWIN FALLS - Shirley Jean (Baty) Nelson, 81, of Twin Falls, passed away on April 2, 2023.

Shirley was born on September 27,1941 to Louie and Lila (Cleaver) Baty in Twin Falls. Shirley met the love of her life while she was in high school, Glenn "Gary" Nelson.

They got married on December 1, 1957, when Shirley was 16 years old. They immediately started a family and had three daughters: Sheree Nelson, Debra Nelson, and Colleen (Nelson) Murphy. By the time Shirley was 20, Gary and she had established their family and their home on the Hollister farm.

In her younger years Shirley had a passion for swimming and spent a lot of her time at the Buhl Community Pool. She took this love of swimming and became a swimming instructor and trainer at Nat-Soo-Pah in Hollister. When she was not at the pool, she volunteered her time at American Red Cross.

Shirley was a beautiful young lady and even had a short career in hair modeling. Shirley and Gary were a dynamic duo. Between farming and owning snowmobile and auto dealerships it seemed as though they had their hands in everything, but this wasn't enough for them. In 1980 they received their Realtor licenses and together opened Nelson Realty in 1986.

Shirley retired from Nelson Realty in 2018 and the company remains open under their eldest daughter Sheree.

Shirley is survived by her brother, Gary Baty, sister, Carmen (Baty) Assendrup, her three daughters: Sheree, Debra, and Colleen, seven grandchildren, 11 great-grandchildren and many nieces and nephews.

Shirley was predeceased by her parents, husband, Gary, and sister, JoAnn.

Services will be held at Rosenau Funeral Home in Twin Falls on April 11, 2023 at 1:00 p.m. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to Hollister Community Presbyterian Church.