Merle Nelson

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Merle Nelson
In office
1977–1986
Personal details
Born (1935-05-08) May 8, 1935 (age 86)
Portland, Maine, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
Spouse(s)
ResidencePortland, Maine
Falmouth, Maine
Alma materLesley College (B.A.)
Harvard University (M.A.)
ProfessionCourt mediator

Merle Nelson (née Royte) (born May 8, 1935) is an American politician and court mediator.

Early life and education[]

Nelson, who is Jewish, was born and raised in Portland, Maine. She graduated from Deering High School in 1953. She earned a teaching degree from Lesley College in Cambridge, Massachusetts. She began teaching and earned a M.A. from Harvard University.[1]

Political career[]

A Democrat, she served five terms in the Maine House of Representatives from 1977 to 1986. In 1977, while a first-term legislator, Nelson testified to the Subcommittee on Employment, Poverty, and Migratory Labor of the United States Congresss on behalf of the Displaced Homemakers Act.[2] Nelson played a leading role in helping establish Seeds of Peace international summer camp in Otisfield, Maine.[3] In 2005, Governor John Baldacci nominated her to the board of trustees of the Maine Community College System.[4] The Maine Centers for Women, Work, and Community's Merle Nelson Making a Difference award is named in her honor.[5]

Family[]

She is married to a fellow Harvard alumnus , a Portland-based corporate attorney. They live in Falmouth Foreside, Maine. One of their children, Judd Nelson (born 1959), is a well-known television and film actor.[3]

References[]

  1. ^ "Merle Nelson". Portland Public Schools Promise. 10 January 2018. Retrieved 30 May 2020.
  2. ^ "Displaced Homemakers Act, 1977: Hearings Before the Subcommittee on Employment, Poverty, and Migratory Labor of the Committee on Human Resources, United States Senate, Ninety-fifth Congress, First Session, on S. 418 ... September 12 and 13, 1977". U.S. Government Printing Office. 1977. Retrieved 30 May 2020.
  3. ^ a b Peck, Abraham J.; Peck, Jean M. (2007). Maine's Jewish Heritage. Arcadia Publishing. ISBN 978-1-4396-3457-8.
  4. ^ Maine State Legislature (122nd: 2004-2006), "Legislative History: Governor's Nomination: Merle Nelson of Falmouth nominated for appointment as member of the Board of Trustees, Maine Community College System (SP581)," https://digitalmaine.com/legishist122/2274
  5. ^ "Maine Centers for Women, Work and Community honors Mary Herman for public service". Bangor Daily News. 9 April 2013. Retrieved 30 May 2020.


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