Donald J. Nielsen

Donald J. Nielsen, age 93, of Bloomer, WI passed away peacefully and surrounded by his family on Tuesday, May 26, 2026, under the care of St. Croix Hospice.

“Don” as most people called him was born on May 23, 1933, the son of Lyman and Pearl (Chase) Nielsen, in rural Tulare, South Dakota, at the home on property homesteaded by his grandfather. Donald, along with his parents and brother, moved to Cumberland, WI in 1941. There he attended the early years of schooling at the Bestlerton, one-room country school with one teacher for 28-30 students, grades one through eight. He attended Cumberland High School graduating in 1951.

Don was raised on a dairy farm, but soon realized his life's ambition was not to be a farmer. However, the community recognized him as the kid who could fix and repair almost anything, including gas and electric welding. After high school graduation, Don was employed as a mechanic for Ritchie Auto Co. in Barron, WI., which sold Pontiac, Buick, and GMC vehicles. Don worked at this dealership until February 1953, and then entered the U.S. Army during the Korean conflict. He served with the 11" Armored Calvery Regiment at Camp Carson, Colorado for 13 months. He then attended the Heavy Duty Armored school at Fort Knox, KY for three months, transferring to Fort Hood, Texas when the 4th Armored Division was reactivated. There he served for 8 months and was discharged in February 1955. After release from military service, he was a mechanic for a heavy equipment Construction Co. that was involved with highways, airports, and dam construction in WI, ILL, and MN. During this time, he met and married the love of his life, Phyllis Chermack. They lived in Rice Lake, WI and then moved to Superior, WI in 1958. There he was employed by the Wisconsin State Patrol, working in the northern 13 counties in Wisconsin, and at the State Weigh Station in Superior until 1965.

In January 1966, Don joined Barron Sales and Service as assistant manager of a new vehicle dealership selling Ford and International cars and trucks. In December of 1968, the Ford Dealership in Bloomer was offered for sale. With a lot of cooperation from the bank and Ford Motor Co., Don was able to close on this business on March 1, 1969. This was the beginning of Nielsen Ford Inc.; Don's dream finally became a reality. He thoroughly enjoyed the automobile business and became very successful with sales and a very dependable service department. The customers and employees were always valued as the best part of the dealership. The dealership won many awards from Ford Motor Co., including the "President's Award" three times for customer satisfaction.

Don served 28 years on Ford's Dealer Advertising Board, serving both as Treasurer and President. Don also served as President of the Bloomer Chamber of Commerce, served on the Industrial Development Board, Bloomer Community Center Board, and 26 years on the Bloomer Mayo Hospital Board. Don was proud to be able to build a new dealership facility in 1994 on Hwy 53 in Bloomer. Don retired in 1998, enabling Don, Phyllis and their four sons and families to spend more time at their Indian Beach Home on Lower Eau Claire Lake, Gordon, WI. Many family and friends enjoyed the hospitality of both Don and Phyllis at this lake home.

He is survived by his wife: Phyllis; sons: John (Nancy), James (Ann), Jeffery (Jill) and Joel (Roxanne); 11 grandchildren: Brad (Dana) Nielsen, Gina (Ben) Schemenauer, Cassandra Nielsen, Jordan (Mark) Steele, Logan (Stephanie) Nielsen, Sydney (Zane) Harrell, Emma Nielsen, Grace Nielsen, Sam Nielsen, Morgen Rust and Kalin (Austin) Hiess; 11 great-grandchildren; other extended family members and friends.

He was preceded in death by his parents: Lyman and Pearl Nielsen; still-born daughter: Mary; brother: Floyd Nielsen; sister-in-law: Pat Nielsen; brothers-in-law: Dr. Dennis Rahn, Robert Kolsky, and step-grandchild: Jhordann Rust.

Visitation will be held from 12:00 PM to 2:30 PM on Sunday, May 31, 2026 at the White Pine Pavilion in Bloomer. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 3:00 PM on Sunday at St. Paul’s Catholic Church in Bloomer. Military Honors will be conducted at church by the Bloomer American Legion and VFW. A livestream of the funeral Mass can be found at: www.facebook.com/olsonfuneralhomebloomer  Burial will be at the North Catholic Cemetery in Bloomer at a later date.

The family would like to extend a special thanks to St. Croix Hospice, especially the nurses, Nichole and Courtney for their exceptional and loving care of Don. Olson Funeral Home in Bloomer is assisting the family with arrangements.