Eleanor Dorothy Olson Sims' Obituary
Eleanor Dorothy Olson Sims, 90, of Memphis passed away Sunday, January 1, 2012, at Quince Nursing & Rehabilitation Center. She was born on August 20, 1921, in Paterson, New Jersey. A 1939 graduate of Clifton High School, Clifton, NJ, she completed registered nurses training at St. Joseph’s Hospital, Paterson, NJ, in 1943. She was commissioned an Ensign in the U.S. Navy Nurse Corps in 1943, rising to the rank of Lieutenant (junior grade). She was stationed at several Naval hospitals during World War II, including Brooklyn, NY, Weeksville, NC, Portsmouth, NH, and Lakehurst, NJ. It was at Lakehurst that she met her future husband, then Lieutenant Russell W. Sims, Jr., who was a pilot stationed there. Upon her discharge from the Navy in 1947, she and Lt. Sims married. Ultimately rising to the rank of Commander during his more than 30-year Naval career, the couple was stationed at numerous bases around the world, finally settling in Memphis in 1969. She returned to her nursing career, working at Methodist Central Hospital-Memphis for 10 years. She also was a volunteer for the U.S.O. at the Naval Air Station Memphis. After their retirements, she and her husband loved to travel. She was preceded in death by her husband of 52 years, CDR Russell W. Sims, Jr., and is survived by her children, Kathleen J. Wilson and her husband, Emmett, of Memphis, retired Air Force Colonel David L. Sims and his wife, Carol, of Springfield, VA, Russell W. Sims, III and his wife, JoAnne, of Cypress, CA, Eileen S. Anderson and her husband, Robert, of Cypress, CA and Donald P. Sims and his wife, Jill, of Tigard, OR; nine grandchildren, James Williamson, Lee Wilson, Brian Sims, Anne Wills, Matthew Sims, Jaclyn Sims, Russell Sims, Eric Anderson and Kirsten Anderson; and four great grandchildren, Wyatt, Owen, and Dean Williamson of Chattanooga, TN, and Heidi Wills of Germantown, TN. The family will receive friends from 12:00 pm until the beginning of the service at 1:00 pm, Monday, January 9, 2012, at Memorial Park Funeral Home with the committal to follow at West Tennessee Veterans Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the United States Department of Veterans Affairs at www.volunteer.va.gov/apps/VolunteerNow Funeral arrangenments have been entrusted to Memorial Park Funeral Home, 5668 Poplar Ave. Memphis, TN 38119, “Behind the Stone Wall”.
What’s your fondest memory of Eleanor?
What’s a lesson you learned from Eleanor?
Share a story where Eleanor's kindness touched your heart.
Describe a day with Eleanor you’ll never forget.
How did Eleanor make you smile?