Ludwig W. "Lou" Nilsson Jr. Obituary (1936 - 2018)

Lou Nilsson died peacefully on Tuesday, August 7th while listening to the laughter of his loving family. He was born in Locust Valley, NY to the late Ludwig and Clara Nilsson. He was the beloved husband of Karen Roden Nilsson, with whom he would have celebrated his 50th wedding anniversary on August 10th. Growing up in North Conway, Lou spent many hours at the skating rink with Leona Reny Hill and John Waterman. Springs and summers were spent as a little leaguer with John and the Hamilton twins, to name a few. Many days were spent at the North Conway Country Club and on the ski patrol at Cranmore Mountain. Uncle Sam drafted Lou into the Army in 1959, sending him to Germany. His tour was extended because of the Berlin Crisis and the building of the Berlin Wall. Lou worked at Insulating Fabricators in Watertown, MA, and after moving to Chelmsford in 1970, began his career as an engineer at Teradyne in Lowell, then Nashua for 26 years. He was a member of the Watertown and Chelmsford Elks. He played in a bowling league for years, but his great love was a few rounds of golf every weekend with his Teradyne buddies or on a local league. His favorite courses were on Hilton Head Island and he enjoyed many trips there over the years. In his later years, Lou enjoyed wandering around the cranberry bogs with his grandsons and spending time outside tending to his numerous flower gardens. He especially loved training the squirrels, chipmunks, and turkeys to come when he called so he could hand feed them. Besides his wife, Lou is survived by his daughter, Jennifer Nilsson Reese, his son, Damon Nilsson, his three grandsons, Matthew, Jacob and Benjamin Reese, his sister-in-law, Yun Hwa Mariano and her husband Charlie, and his nephew, Tim. He also leaves behind his beloved cats, especially his sweet Annie, and his loving grand-dog, Izzy. He was lovingly known as Bappa by his grandsons, and by Grumpy to others close to him. He proudly wore a shirt from his collection of Disneys Grumpy shirts nearly every day. It being his wish, there will be no formal services. Those wishing to pay their respects may join his wife and children at his daughters house on Sunday, August 19, from 1pm-5pm at 46 Gorham street, Chelmsford, MA. In lieu of flowers, please consider making a donation to The Paul Center, 39 Concord rd, Chelmsford, MA 01824. Those wishing to pay their respects may join his wife and children at his daughter's house on Sunday, August 19, from 1pm-5pm at 46 Gorham Street, Chelmsford, MA.