Nola Mae Vann Woldseth

Nola Mae Vann Woldseth, 85, died on Palm Sunday, April 13, 2025, at her son’s home in Madison, Wisconsin. She had entered this world in her grandparents’ (Zach and Ola Lee) home outside Dunn, North Carolina, on September 23, 1939. The daughter of Riley Warren Vann and Gladys Mae Lee Vann grew up on their farm. She would enjoy watching Westerns and listening to the Grand Ole Opry on the radio, and, to the amusement of many, she apparently occasionally served as a lookout for moonshiners. She graduated Dunn High School in the Class of 1957. Like the popular Statler Brothers song from the group she loved and heard in concert, she “had her dreams.” Those dreams took her to Southeastern Bible College (now Southeastern University) in Lakeland, Florida. There, she met George Woldseth, who was the son of Scandinavian immigrants and came from Brooklyn, New York. She had never seen anyone playing chess before and watched him play out of the intellectual curiosity she never lost in life. He liked what he saw in her and mutual friends tricked her into a group date. After many chaperoned dates, in the middle of a lake where the boat engine unfortunately gave out, she received a marriage proposal she nevertheless accepted. George and Nola married August 24, 1958, at the Glad Tidings Assembly of God in Dunn, North Carolina. Nola dropped out of school to support her husband until he graduated and entered the ministry. They would have three sons, and each son would receive a family name and a Biblical name since family and God were so important to her. After the birth of her final child, Nola decided it was time to finish her education. After putting her children to bed each night, she would study for her college courses. Commuting to River Falls, Nola graduated with honors and a double major in psychology and elementary education from the University of Wisconsin-River Falls. Nola taught for many years, and her lilting Carolina accent brought smiles to many in small town Wisconsin. Upon her retirement, she moved to St. Petersburg, Florida, until returning to Wisconsin to be with her son, David, in her last years of life. Nola was preceded in death by her brother, Larry Dale Vann, in 1989 and her sister, Brenda Lou Vann, in 2021 as well as her parents, Riley Warren and Gladys Mae Lee Vann, in 2001 and 2010. On May 17, 2004, her husband, George, died. Surviving Nola are: three sons, George Paul (Linda) Woldseth of Seminole, Florida, James Riley Woldseth of St. Petersburg, Florida, and David Allen Woldseth of Madison, Wisconsin; four grandchildren: Amanda (Juan) Arizaga, Jacob (Tiana) Woldseth, Joshua (Taylor) Woldseth, and Brady Woldseth; and seven great-grandchildren: Hayden, Nayeli, Manny, Owen, Juan, Evelyna, and Elian. A family graveside service has been planned for Saturday, April 26, 2025 at 10:00am. Nola will be buried beside her husband at the Memorial Park Cemetery in St. Petersburg, Florida. The family is being assisted by the DeGusipe Funeral Home and Crematory in St. Petersburg, Florida. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Agrace Foundation, 5395 E. Cheryl Parkway, Madison, WI 53711, the hospice that served her and her family well in her final days.

Nola Mae Vann Woldseth

September 23, 1939 - April 13, 2025