Nellie Winona Blue-Bollenbacher (Baldwin)

Nellie Winona Bunn, the daughter of H. Clifford Bunn and Hazel (Harris) Johnson, was born on February 10, 1941, in Grand Rapids, Michigan. As a child, she excelled at school and music. Her mother always told her “A house without music is like a house without windows”. Her mother taught her how to play the piano when she was just 7 years old. She also began directing choirs at St. Luke AME Church that same year. This was the first of many choirs that Nellie would go on to direct. Nellie loved sports and shined as a first baseman for the nearly 20 years she played. She would graduate at the age of 16 but continued to play ball well beyond high school.

Nellie attended Western Michigan University where she received her Bachelor of Arts in Business, her MA Degree in Counseling and Student Personnel Administration, and completed her doctoral classes in Educational Leadership. She would later put her skills to use as a principal in Muskegon at Steele Jr. High School and as K-12 Principal of West Shore Christian Academy. Nellie also taught evenings for Muskegon Correctional Facility, was Assistant Principal at Godwin High School, and Consultant for Kentwood Schools in Grand Rapids, Michigan. She was on the faculty of Davenport College and served as Judicial Coordinator for Grand Valley State University. Nellie was able to combine her passion for education, love for people, and heart for God by founding the Grand Valley Voices of Freedom Choir. She would later go on to travel back and forth to Haiti on mission trips with her children and students. She often spoke about how life-changing her mission work was. She worked on faculty at Western Michigan University and later took a position as Judicial Administrator and teacher at Taylor University in Upland, Indiana. She returned to Michigan accepting a position as the Middle School Principal for Baldwin Community Schools and later became Superintendent of Crossroads Charter Academy of Big Rapids, Michigan.

Beyond being a wonderful educator, Nellie was gifted on the keys and could often be found playing any piano or organ she saw. Her musical anointing and magnetic smile made room for her to play for several churches and different ministries throughout the years. To add to her talents, she learned to write in shorthand early in life and incorporated it into her everyday life. If you asked, she would brag about being able to type 250 words per minute thanks to her shorthand skills. She also had many business ventures which included her charter bus and limousine business. She served as Pastor of First Christian Church of Manton, Michigan until she took a sabbatical to spend more time with her children and grandchildren.

Nellie’s greatest passion was being a child of God. The second was being a great mother, Nonna, G- Nonna, and foster mother. Nellie is survived by siblings Carol Smith, Valerie Chatmon, and Bonnie Johnson; children Robin Benton, Stacia Benton, Mark (Cathy) Benton, and Rochelle (Gabriel) Blue Keyes; a special god-daughter Shavaun “KK” (Rodney) Savage, grandchildren Tami, Billy, Robyn, Collin, Isaiah, Gregory, Justin, Anjala (Marcus), Dominique, Mark II, Aaliyah, Analisa, Avianna, Caiden, Kenzo, and Ariyah; 10 great-grandchildren; and a host of beloved nieces, nephews, cousins, godchildren, and friends. She was preceded in death by her parents, stepfather, Friley Johnson, brothers Ronald Bunn and Donald Bunn, grandsons Jerome, Brook, Roman, great-grandsons Dominick and DeMarco.