Nelda Grace Musselman

1926 - 2021  (95 years)

• Name	Nelda Grace Musselman
  Born	25 Feb 1926	Preston (Cambridge), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada   [1]
  Gender	Female
  FindAGrave	https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/36163271
  Name	Nelda Grace Shantz
  Residence	Bloomingdale, Woolwich Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada
  Eby ID Number	Waterloo-256839
  Died	3 Jul 2021	Cambridge, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada
  Buried	Hagey Cemetery, Cambridge, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada   [1]
  Person ID	I256839	Generations
  Last Modified	12 May 2025

  
  

  Father	Edgar Alvin Musselman,   b. 14 Jan 1900, Peel Twp., Wellington Co., Ontario, Canada ,   d. 21 Dec 1979, Cambridge, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada  (Age 79 years)
  Mother	Nellie Irene Snider,   b. 30 Aug 1901, Waterloo Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada ,   d. 21 Jan 1982, Cambridge, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada  (Age 80 years)
  Married	5 Sep 1923	Waterloo Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada   [2]
  Family ID	F5875	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

  Family	Jacob Ralph "Ralph" Shantz,   b. 21 Feb 1922, , Ontario, Canada ,   d. 3 Dec 2014, Cambridge, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada  (Age 92 years)
  Married	14 Aug 1947
  Children	1. Roger Shantz   2. Linda Shantz   3. Stan Shantz
  Last Modified	13 May 2025
  Family ID	F211565	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

• Notes

  Nelda Shantz Thursday, February 25th, 1926 - Saturday, July 3rd, 2021 Of Cambridge, passed away on Saturday, July 3rd, 2021 at the age of 95. Wife of J. Ralph Shantz (deceased 2014) for 67 years. Loving mother of Roger (Susan) Shantz, Linda (Elwin) Garland, and Stan (Kathy) Shantz. Grandmother to Barb, Brian, Nathan, Andrew, Rachel, Sarah, Kristi, and Kayleena. Great grandmother to 4 great grandsons and 5 great granddaughters. She was the daughter of the late Edgar and Irene (nee Snider) Musselman. Predeceased by sister Helen Steckly, brother Elmer Musselman, sister Arlene Burnett; nine brother-in-laws and eight sister-in-laws. Nelda was born February 26, 1926 in a red-bricked house on Fountain Street in then Preston (now Cambridge), Ontario. At three or four years of age, the family moved to a farm at Bloomingdale, then a year or so later to Vineland, and then Grimsby at age six. At age sixteen a move was made to a farm near the current Pioneer BBQ at Kitchener. At age twenty-one, she married Ralph and they moved to Alma for a short time where Ralph had a trucking business. They then moved to Freeport (Kitchener) and lived in an apartment at the back of Ralph's parent's house where Ralph farmed and where their first son was soon born. In 1952 they bought a farm at Blair (Cambridge) where they dairy farmed until 1966 after selling the farm and herd. In early 1974 they moved to New Dundee, then to Lang's Circle, Cambridge in 1981, then to the Fairview cottage in 1995. While living in the cottage, Mom and Dad hosted many visitors, including various church leaders. Often these visitors had relatives they were visiting in the Fairview Home next door and stayed overnight in their downstairs apartment with Mom providing "old time" farm meals. Ralph suffered a stroke in 2008 and moved into Long Term Care at Fairview with Mom moving to apartment # 518 at Fairview, where she lived a full life until her passing. In Nelda's pre-marriage years, she held many jobs \endash picking fruit at Grimsby; working at Savages Shoe Factory, Preston/Cambridge; JM Schneider's, Kitchener; and as a live-in maid. After moving to the Blair farm, she did house cleaning and drove school bus for Rockway Mennonite High School. After the farm was sold, she worked for the Doon Pioneer Village for several years. Nelda was an excellent quilter, great cook and gardener, dedicated to family, community and church. She defined the word "hospitality". Never was a visitor (known or not) at church or at any random meeting allowed to go on their way without an invitation to a meal at their home. She went out of her way to welcome all, especially those on the "edges" into "her" family. She was a long time member of Hagey/Preston Mennonite Church where she was very active in the WMSC (active women's group responding to any needs presented to them). She volunteered for many years as a 4-H leader. She was also active, along with long time neighbor and friend Pat Kinzie Witmer in many hospitality initiatives in the Cambridge area. Along with Ralph, she volunteered for many years with Choice Books, MCC, travelling much of Ontario and into the NE USA. She enjoyed travels to Puerto Rico; western and eastern Canada as well as all of Ontario in their trailer; Pennsylvania; Ohio to visit friends and family and take in any Mennonite Relief Sale in the area; and twelve trips to Arizona where son Stan was a minister at Trinity Mennonite Church, Glendale, Arizona. Thank you to the Fairview Mennonite Home staff; to Nelda's friends who visited and assisted her while she was in her apartment at Fairview: to the PSW's with the Waterloo Wellington Integrated Assisted Living; to Dr. Hollowell; to Pastor's Danielle Raimbault and KyongJung Kim from Preston Mennonite Church. Visitation is Friday, July 30th, 6-8 p.m. at Lounsbury Funeral Home. Check the funeral home website for covid regulations. Interment and funeral are private and by invitation In lieu of flowers donations are invited to Preston Mennonite Church, Mennonite Central Committee, or Fairview Mennonite Home Nelda Shantz Obituary - Visitation & Funeral Information (no date) Obituary - Cambridge, ON | Lounsbury Funeral Home. Available at: https://lounsbury.frontrunnerpro.com/book-of-memories/4657469/Shantz-Nelda/ (Accessed: 30 August 2024).

  
  

• Sources

  [S146] Cemetery - ON, Waterloo, Cambridge - Hagey Mennonite CC#5431 Cemetery Internet Link . Shantz / J. Ralph Shantz / Feb. 21, 1922 / / Nelda G. / Musselman / Feb. 25, 1926- / [married] Aug. 14, 1947 [S3108] Vit - ON - Marriage Registration, 022209-23. Edgar Musselman, 23, occ. Carting, b. Wellington Co., res. Waterloo, son of Jacob Musselman and Angeline Snider married Nellie Irene Snider, 22, occ. Domestic, b. Waterloo Co., res. Blair, daughter of Nathaniel Snider and Malinda Wismer, Witnessed by: Kenard Snider of Waterloo and Hilda Moyer of Vineland, 5 September 1923 in Waterloo Twp.

  
  

• Event Map

  Born - 25 Feb 1926 - Preston (Cambridge), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada Residence - - Bloomingdale, Woolwich Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada Died - 3 Jul 2021 - Cambridge, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada Buried - - Hagey Cemetery, Cambridge, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada  = Link to Google Earth