West Bend, WI – The family of Hope Cross Nelson invites you to gather to celebrate Hope’s memory at the Regner Park Beach House, 800 N. Main Street, West Bend, on Sunday, July 9, 2023.
There will be a social hour starting at 1 p.m. and a short program at 2 p.m. Light refreshments will be served. Use the Camp Lodge and Beach House Entrance on Park Avenue for parking closest to the Beach House.
It was December 11, 2022 when long-time West Bend alderperson and activist Hope Cross Nelson died while in hospice care at Ivy Manor in West Bend. She was 91.
Hope was born on March 27, 1931, in South Amboy, NJ, and was raised there and in Trenton, NJ, while her father, Harold G. Hoffman, served as Governor of New Jersey during her youth.
She never lost her New Jersey accent despite living in the Midwest for over 70 years. Hope received a bachelor’s degree in child psychology from Purdue University in 1952. She met her first husband, the late Robert Cross, while at Purdue.
They were married on June 10, 1951, the same day Bob received his degree from Purdue and his commission in the US Navy. They moved to Madison, WI, in 1953, where Bob had his last Navy assignment, teaching ROTC candidates at UW.
They moved to West Bend in 1956, when Bob began his long career teaching high school biology and coaching track and cross-country. They raised a family of seven children while living on a small farm near Little Cedar Lake, where Hope became known in Washington County as the caretaker of last resort for unwanted pets.
She was a champion cook and baker, earning the blue ribbon for her Butter horns at the Wisconsin state fair. Bob Cross died in 1983.
Hope married West Bend resident and high school physics teacher Paul Nelson in 1985 and moved into the City of West Bend. She soon ran successfully for a seat on the West Bend Common Council.
She served as President of the Common Council and was known for her coffee hours at Pick ‘n Save, where she met regularly with her constituents during her many years in office.
Hope was active in several other civic and political organizations, serving as a National Committeewoman on the Democratic National Committee; delegate to the 1972, 1976, and 1980 Democratic National Conventions; chair of the Washington County Democratic Party; and Washington County campaign chair for many national, state, and local candidates.
Hope was a Brownie, Cub Scout, and 4-H leader during the years her children were active in those groups, and she volunteered at the Washington County Fair for several decades, helping to stage and judge the baking competition.
Hope was a volunteer day camp leader for central city children at the Northcott Neighborhood House in Milwaukee in the late 1960s and early 1970s, and she and Paul were tutors in recent years at Our Next Generation, a nonprofit organization serving children in the central city of Milwaukee.
After Hope retired from office and Paul retired from teaching at West Bend East High School, she and Paul traveled to 30 countries while remaining active in political and charitable causes.
More information on services will be posted when details are available.
