Obituary of Nelda Albright

Nelda Jenice McDonald Albright was many things to many people – and was good at all of them. She was a daughter, wife, mother, friend to many, neighbor, student, teacher, servant of the Most High God, and lover of talk, food, and entertaining activities.

Cleo and Nelline McDonald welcomed Nelda as their first and only child on March 22, 1943, in Wills Point, TX. Franklin D. Roosevelt was U.S. President, and our nation was still deeply involved in World War II. But by the end of that year in December, The Great Depression was finally ending, and like Mr. and Mrs. McDonald, the nation was looking toward the beginning of a new life. Nelda was about age three when the family moved to Dallas.

Nelda used that new life to the fullest. She grew up in a strong Christian environment and was a faithful follower of Christ throughout her life. She grew up as a member of Mt. Horeb Baptist Church in South Dallas where she was an active member of the Youth Department. Later in adulthood, she joined Friendship West Baptist Church in Dallas, where she served in the Connection Center and was a member of the G.A.P. Prayer Ministry. She was married to the late Simmie Albright and together they had three children, Marcus, Michael and Melanie Albright. She has two grandchildren, Nathaniel “Nate” Albright and Laila Milan Davis.

Nelda graduated from Lincoln H.S. in Dallas and earned Bachelors and Masters degrees in education from Prairie View A&M University in Prairie View, TX. She taught Science and Life Sciences at multiple Dallas Independent School District middle and high schools for more than 36 years before she retired in 2004. Some of the schools included Fred F. Florence, Boude Storey, and Bessie Coleman Middle Schools; and South Oak Cliff and Roosevelt High Schools.

She returned to teaching not long after retirement. Some of her later schools included Dallas Can Academy and schools in the Cedar Hill Independent School District. Her commitment to science education extended beyond the traditional classroom through her work with The Perot Museum of Nature and Science Discovery Camps where she further inspired students’ love of learning through hands-on exploration.

Family and friends knew Nelda as a fun-loving person who would awake each day ready to walk through the various doors that opened that day to her adventurous nature. She was curious about life, which may have led to her decision to explore science as her profession. Nelda was a member of the Dallas Retired Teachers Association and Iota Phi Lambda business and professional women’s sorority. Also at an early age, she mastered and cherished swimming, and according to friends, “was like a fish in the water.”

Besides helping countless students to appreciate the mysteries and wonders of science, perhaps one of her great achievements was as a mother who went far beyond the call of duty in raising three successful children – now accomplished adults in their own rights. She participated in the Parent Teacher Association (PTA) and was an active school band parent supporter. Nelda recognized no limits in personally sacrificing to provide education and moral and ethical preparation for what her children would face in life.

Nelda’s surviving family and loved ones include her three children Marcus, Michael (wife Shakara Brembry-Albright), and Melanie; two grandchildren; Aunt Delores Ellis and her family, and many other friends and loved ones.