Thurnelda “Nellie” Williams French
Thurnelda “Nellie” Williams French of rural Gridley died Wednesday, Sept. 20, 2006, at her home. She was 92.
Mrs. French was a housekeeper and caretaker for disabled and elderly people in the Gridley area. She also helped her first husband farm and was a riveter at Boeing in Wichita during World War II.
The daughter of William Walker and Mary Metzger Wise, she was born Aug. 10, 1914, in rural Neosho township in southern Coffey County. She grew up in the Crotty neighborhood east of Gridley and attended Victory School through the eighth grade.
She married Jack Williams on Dec. 31, 1933, at Gridley. They farmed in the St. Louis Store area south of Gridley. During World War II, he worked on the Yukon Highway in Alaska. After the war, they returned to the Crotty area where they farmed for many years. He died Feb. 23, 1974. She married R.E. French on June 11, 1983, at Oklahoma city. He died Nov. 10, 2003.
Mrs. French was a longtime member of the Crotty Church and when it closed, she became a member of the United Methodist Church in Gridley. She was a member for more than 63 years of the Order of the Eastern Star, in which she held many offices and was a past matron; and a member of Ladies Aid.
She is survived by two sons, Stanley Williams of Nassau Bay, Texas, and Jack Williams of Missouri City, Texas; six grandchildren; 11 great-grandchildren; and two great-great-grandchildren. A brother, Ruben Wise; and a sister, Anne Richards, died earlier.
The funeral will be at 10:30 a.m. Monday in the Gridley United Methodist Church. Burial will be in Gridley Cemetery.
Memorial contributions to the church or the Gridley Library may be sent in care of Jones Funeral Home, P.O. Box 277, Burlington, KS 66839.