John Mann Nielson was born June 30, 1943, in Waterville, Vermont and died surrounded by love on April 28th at Brookdale Senior Solutions in Mount Vernon, Ohio. He was the oldest son of Rev. John Bechtold Nielson and Marguerite Helene Mann Nielson.
John graduated from Eastern Nazarene College with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in religion in 1965. In 1967 Nielson graduated again from ENC with a Master of Arts in Religion degree. He then went on to complete a Divinity degree at Nazarene Theological Seminary and graduated cum laude in 1969. Finally, he was also awarded an honorary Doctor of Divinity degree in 1989 from Eastern Nazarene College where he also received an Alumni Achievement Award. John received preaching awards from ENC and NTS.
On June 30, 1967, John married the love of his life, Janice Marie Williams, in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. He loved her faithfully and beautifully. They were married almost 56 years at the time of his death. He is survived by and, despite his many accomplishments, was most proud of his wife and his two children, Rev. Dr. John Williams Nielson (Amy) and Rev. Janelle Marie Nielson Beiler, (Joel) and their families. His granddaughters, Bethany (Ben), Kathryn (David), and Jenna, and his grandsons, Jacob (Kayla) and Jaben were blessed to know him as Pop-Pop and to be loved by him so well.
John is also survived by his siblings Rev. Dr. Merritt Joseph Nielson (Linda), Mrs. Patricia Lynn Nielson “Patty” Parker (Ronald), and Rev. Dr. William “Bill” Brooks Nielson (Susan) and their families.
John was an ordained minister in the Church of the Nazarene and served as a pastor, missionary, educator, and an administrator. He pastored churches in Wells River, Vermont; Frankfurt, Germany; Carrollton, Missouri; Warminster, Pennsylvania; and Syracuse, New York. He served as a missionary for the Church of the Nazarene in Copenhagen, Denmark; Manila, Philippines; and Busingen, Germany.
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