Fae Christensen

Fae Christensen, 98, longtime Paxton Resident, died Sunday, November 16, 2014, in Southlake Village in Lincoln. Fae Christensen was born November 12, 1916 in Bellevue, the daughter of Carl H. and Eva (Erickson) Traulsen. As a young child she moved with her family to Keith County, Nebr. She began her education in rural School District #29 and graduated from Paxton High School at the age of sixteen. Fae attended nurses training and became qualified as an aid. On February 1, 1939 Fae was united in marriage to Orvel C. Christensen at the courthouse in Stapleton. The couple made their first home in North Platte. During World War II the couple lived in Los Angeles and worked in the aircraft industry. Orvel worked as a machinist and Fae as a stock chaser. Following the death of Fae's father, she and Orvel returned to the family farm ten miles west of Paxton on the high divide. In the 1950's they became dairy farmers milking Holsteins using family hands, milking machines and milking parlors. In the 1960's the family resided on a farm east of Paxton for several years. Fae attended the University of Nebraska, Lincoln and earned a Bachelor of Science Degree in Elementary Education. She taught third grade in the Paxton School system for twenty years. In the 1970's Fae again returned to the University and earned her Masters Degree. Upon her retirement she and Orvel became volunteers serving over 10,000 meals on wheels over a nine year period. In 1986 the couple was honored with the Good Neighbor Award from Ak-Sar-Ben. The Village honored Fae and Orvel as marshalls for the Paxton Labor Day Parade a few years later. She was a member of Trinity Ev. Lutheran Church. Her hobbies included reading and swimming. Fae spent many hours recording burials in the Paxton Cemetery and developed the Cemetery plot map. She enjoyed collecting genealogies for many Paxtonites both past and present. In recent years Fae taught a water aerobics class at Goodall Recreation Center. Preceding her in death was her husband in 1998 and two brothers, Horace Traulsen and Herman Traulsen.. Survivors include two sons: Keith (Susan) Christensen and Glen (Carolyn) Christensen, all of Lincoln; a daughter Bonnie (David) Dudley of Batavia, IL.; Five Grandchildren: Karen Campbell of Lincoln; Andrea (Joe) Luby of Kansas City, MO; Steve (Rosemary) Christensen of Salt Lake City, UT; Scott (Rebecca) Christensen of Lincoln; and Jared Dudley of Durango, CO. and six great-grandchildren. Visitation will be Wednesday, Nov. 19, from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. in Draucker Funeral Home. The funeral service will be Thursday, Nov. 20, at 1 p.m. in the Paxton Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church with Vicar J A Welsh officiating. Burial is in the Paxton Cemetery. A memorial has been established in her memory to Paxton Consolidated School Foundation, c/o Del Dack, PO Box 368, Paxton, NE., 69155.

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