- Date Of Birth: July 26, 1908
- Date Of Death: December 21, 2006
- State: Minnesota
Alma Henrietta Nelson was born on July 22, 1908 to Andrew and Lena (Hoeppner) Nelson at Bayvieu, Washington. They moved to Mansion, Iowa where Lena’s family lived and she attended country school.
Her family moved to Warroad, MN in 1916. She attended Warroad School, and the family belonged to Zion Lutheran Church. Arvid Larson and Andy Swanson were student pastors at the church at the time. Alma played the organ and would travel with them to Spooner, Graceton and Swift starting in the early morning and ending their day back at Zion in the evening.
She graduated from North Star College in Warren, MN in 1928. In 1929 she moved to Minneapolis and started at a Bible school. She became homesick and returned to Warroad. Her grandmother in Iowa then became very ill so Alma moved there to help them with the corn husking and the housekeeping. She returned to Warroad and worked for $2.00 per week housekeeping. Reverend Erickson of Zion had a brother in Minneapolis that needed a housekeeper so Alma moved there to work, and received $10.00 per week.
Alma met Edgar Peterson at a church in Minneapolis.
