Alfred Alexander Nelson, Iii

Alfred Alexander Nelson, III, 86, passed away peacefully January 19, 2019, at The Hearth at Juday Creek.
Born August 7, 1932, in Evanston, IL, he was the son of the late Elizabeth (Gnemi) Schuchman and Alfred Alexander Nelson, II. His brother, Nathan Nelson, also preceded him in death.
On January 28, 1956, Al married the love of his life, Margaret Schaab, in Germany, where they met. Together they shared nearly 63 wonderful years of marriage, traveling the world. They were not only husband and wife, but true soul mates and shared a loving, devoted relationship. She survives him. His sister-in-law, Faith; two nieces and a nephew are also left to cherish his memory.
Al attended Purdue University, graduating with a Mechanical Engineering Degree in 1954. In 1962, Al was honorably discharged as a Reserved Commission Officer, 1st Lieutenant, of the U.S. Army.
In 1956, Al began his career at Harnischfeger Corporation in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Ambitious by nature, Al began as a Sales Engineer, traveling Europe assisting distributors with product sales. Al then served as a Territory Manager for Austria, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Ireland and the U.K. Al ultimately served as a Director and Vice President of Harnischfeger International Corporation, based in Tokyo, Japan, where he directed marketing activities, insured successful relationships, worked on special marketing surveys for domestic and international operations, handled licensing projects and rewrote international distributor agreements, as well as sales and service policy procedures. Al subsequently was responsible for marketing Construction & Mining Division and Industrial Division products in the Middle East and North Africa.
In 1970, Al joined Clark Construction Machinery Division as Vice President/Marketing for Europe, Africa and the Middle East. In 1980, based in Brugge, Belgium, he was responsible for sales and area engineering of products produced in Brugge and North America components plants. In 1984, Al was appointed Vice President, Business and Product Development for Clark Components Company, a division of Clark Equipment Company. In this newly created position, Al implemented the product manager organizational concept, designed to strengthen the worldwide marketing and engineering product efforts in the Clark Components Company. He also oversaw the company’s engineering activities, as well as market research, business planning and new product development.
He and Margaret chose Granger, Indiana, to enjoy their retirement years, frequently continuing to travel the world. Al enjoyed being involved in the community, serving on many Boards, and held a particular fondness for his role with assisting the Hamilton Grove Retirement Community. Al was fond of many sports, including being a big fan of Purdue University Football, as well as an avid player of tennis, golf, and bowling.
Private services will be held at a later date. The family would like to extend heartfelt appreciation for the assistance provided by Senior Helpers over the past few years.
Memorial contributions may be made in Al’s name to Alzheimer’s and Dementia Services of Northern Indiana, 922 East Colfax Avenue, South Bend, IN 46617.