Russell Marion Nelson is a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (often mistakenly called the Mormon Church).

CHILDHOOD

Russell Marion Nelson was born in Salt Lake City on September 9, 1924, to Marion C. and Edna Anderson Nelson. Russell is one of four children born to this family. He has two sisters, Marjory and Enid, and one brother, Robert.

Russell came from a long line of Mormon pioneers; all eight of his great-grandparents joined the Mormon Church in Europe and immigrated to Utah. With that legacy left by his grandparents and parents, Russell has carried on their courage and commitment in his professional life and in his church service in the Mormon Church.

From a very young age, Russell was taught how to work hard and to be committed to whatever task he encountered. At the age of ten, Russell began running errands for his father’s advertising company. As he grew and attended school, he worked part time in a bank, the post office, and a photo studio. Russell was blessed with a passion for music. His talent at playing the piano and singing led him to sing in choirs at high school and college and to perform in the musicals presented at his schools.

EDUCATION

Upon completion of high school, Russell decided to attend the University of Utah and study medicine. Doing well in his studies and being a member of several honor societies, Russell received his B.A degree in 1945. Continuing on with his medical training, he was able to complete his four-year studies in three years, and at the young age of twenty-two, in 1945, Russell graduated with high honors and qualified as a doctor.

After his internship at the University of Minnesota, Dr. Nelson had the opportunity to work on a team “for three years developing the first machine that could perform the functions of a patient’s heart and lungs during heart surgery. In 1951, the machine performed well in the first open-heart operation on a human being.”

In 1955 a medical milestone was met when Dr. Nelson performed the first successful open heart surgery using the heart-lung machine in Salt Lake City. He observed, “When I started medical school, we were taught that we must not touch the human heart or it would stop beating. Yet Doctrine and Covenants 88:36 tells us that “all kingdoms have a law given.” Therefore I knew that even the blessing of the heartbeat was predicated upon law. And I reasoned that if those laws could be understood and controlled, perhaps they could be utilized for the blessing of the sick. To me this meant that if we would work, study, and ask the proper questions in our scientific experiments, we could learn the laws that govern the heartbeat. Now, having learned some of those laws, we know that we can turn the heartbeat off, perform delicate repairs on damaged valves or vessels, and then let the heart beat again.”

After his two-year service in the U.S. Army, Dr. Nelson worked for a year in Boston at the Massachusetts General Hospital, then returned to the University of Minnesota for a year and received his Ph.D. degree in 1954.

MILITARY

Dr. Nelson enlisted in the Army to serve a two-year term of medical duty during the Korean War. He served in Korea, Japan, and at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C.

MARRIAGE/FAMILY

While Russell was attending the University of Utah, he was recruited to play a role in the school play. When he arrived at the theatre for rehearsal, he could hear a soprano voice that took his breath away. When he saw the beautiful dark-haired girl on the stage he was mesmerized. Introduced to him was Dantzel White, the young woman that would be performing with him throughout the play. Russell felt that she was the most beautiful girl in the world and sensed that he would marry her. Unbeknownst to him, Dantzel felt the same way. When she returned home to Perry, Utah, she announced to her family that she had met the man she wanted to marry. Three years later on August 31, 1945, Russell and Dantzel were married in the Salt Lake Temple. This family was blessed with nine daughters and one son.

Dantzel completed her education at the University of Utah with a bachelor’s degree in teaching and taught school until the birth of her first child.

During those lean years while Russell was in medical school and continuing his medical training, his top concern was his family. Once asked by a writer for a national magazine how he did it all, Russell explained, “We believe that our major goal in life is to strengthen our family. Service in the Church, the community, continuing education, and our occupational endeavors all are undertaken to provide development for our family.”

The writer was surprised by the answer–”But earlier in our interview you said you and your wife had always tried to obey the scripture [in Matthew 6:33] ‘Seek ye first the kingdom of God.’ Now you tell me the family comes first.”

Russell continued, “He thought he had me. But I simply reviewed my long-established priorities and said, ‘I cannot seek the kingdom of God without loving and honoring first that family He has given to me. I cannot honor that family without loving and caring first for my wife!'”

Russell always gave credit to his wife, while Dantzel always gave credit to Russell. Russell stated that his beloved Dantzel was the heart of the home. She never complained. Dantzel lovingly stated, “[Russell] makes me feel that I am most important in his life. He didn’t allow the children to be rude or talk back ever. And he always says, ‘Mother is the queen of the house. Whatever she wants, that’s the way it’s going to be.’ I’ve always had that support.”

Family life in the Nelson household was completely devoted to each individual. When Russell was home, he was home; meaning that he didn’t watch television, but helped with the meals, the dishes, and homework with the children and made sure that there was always one-on-one time with each child. Each child shares that they never questioned their father’s love for them; each knew that they were “his favorite child.”

Sadness struck the Nelson family when Russell and Dantzel lost their beloved daughter Emily, who left a family of five young children. Although times were difficult, the Nelson family gathered together, buoying each other up and sharing their love and experiences of Emily with one another. Such an experience brought the family much closer together.

In February 2005, tragedy again afflicted the Nelson family with Russell’s beloved wife Dantzel passing away unexpectedly with her husband by her side. Fourteen months later, Russell married Wendy Watson, a professor of marriage and family therapy in the School of Family Life at Brigham Young University.

CAREER

Upon completion of service in the military and receiving his Ph.D., Russell and his family, which then included four daughters with the fifth soon to arrive, Dr. Nelson would begin his work at the University of Utah College of Medicine. As an assistant professor of surgery, he continued in research, teaching, and surgery.

In 1959, Dr. Nelson left the University of Utah to go into private practice.

1965 brought an unexpected opportunity for Dr. Nelson. He was asked to assume the position of professor of surgery and chairman of the Division of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery at another major university. The offer included a generous salary and an arrangement to pay entirely for the college education of all his children. The offer was overwhelming, and the Nelson’s were inclined to accept, but, after consulting with then-president of the Mormon Church, David O. McKay, they declined the offer. Not knowing the reasons why, they simply said that it didn’t feel right.

Dr. Nelson’s greatest challenge was when he was attending an area conference for the Mormon Church in England. Elder Spencer W. Kimball, who was attending the conference as well, mentioned to Russell the difficulties that he was having with his heart. When they returned home, tests were conducted that showed a deteriorating aortic valve and a dangerous obstruction in one of Elder Kimball’s arteries. Dr. Nelson explained, “The risks of an aortic valve replacement alone in a man aged seventy-seven are high. The risks of a coronary graft operation alone in a man of that age are high. To combine them would compound enormously the risk of either one alone.” Surgery was risky, as was doing nothing. On the eve of the surgery, a priesthood blessing was given to both Elder Kimball and Dr. Nelson. Dr. Nelson was promised that the operation would be performed without error and that he need not fear. The surgery was performed without complications.

Dr. Nelson became quite influential locally, nationally, and internationally. His services included acting as president of the Thoracic Surgical Directors Association, of the Society for Vascular Surgery, and of the Utah State Medical Association. He also served as director of the American Board of Thoracic Surgery, and at the LDS Hospital he served as chairman of the Division of Thoracic Surgery and served as vice-chairman of the board of governors.

Over the years, he has received numerous honors, including the Citation for International Service from the American Heart Association and the Golden Plate Award from the American Academy of Achievement.

MISSION

Russell did not have the opportunity to serve a full-time mission when he was nineteen, because the United States was at war. He did not, however, let that prevent him from being a Mormon missionary elsewhere. He sought out opportunities to act as a missionary. When others noticed that he wasn’t like the other doctors and wanted to know why, he would introduce them to the Church.

CHURCH SERVICE

During the years of his education and professional responsibilities, Russell served faithfully in all his Church assignments in Sunday School, priests quorum, bishoprics, high councils, and as a missionary on Temple Square in Salt Lake City. He then served seven years as a stake president, eight years as the General Sunday School president for the Mormon Church, and four years as a Regional Representative.

April 1984 brought a call from the First Presidency for Russell to be called to the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles in the Mormon Church. Elder Nelson’s preparation, dedication, and devotion in the medical field and service in the Mormon Church has prepared him to be an Apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ. In humility he explained, “I have a deep and abiding faith in God and in his Son, Jesus Christ. The work I’m now engaged in is the most important cause in the world. It’s all encompassing, it’s fulfilling, and it’s challenging. And I must do my best, because I have an accountability for this stewardship.”