A Life Story

Mrs. Deborah Faye Holton Nelson, 74, of Rincon, Georgia, passed away on Monday, May 4, 2026 at Candler Hospital. Deborah will be missed by her husband of 34 years, David Barry Nelson, Sr.; children, Lisa Jean Ratcliffe Steptoe, Charles Leighton Hendricks, Jr. (Katie), Kelly Jenea Nelson, Virginia Marie Nelson Johnson (Ken), David Barry Nelson, Jr. (Leah), and Christopher Ellis Nelson (Emilie); grandchildren, Morgan Lyn Steptoe (Davis Rooks), James Dennis Steptoe III,Isabella Louise Hendricks, Matthew Joseph Hendricks, Jason O’Keefe (Emma), Julee O’Keefe (Cam Miles), Josee O’Keefe, Grace Johnson, Wyatt Johnson, Kaili Nelson McCloud (Andrew), Jake Nelson, Abram Zydonyk, Wiley Nelson, and Everett Nelson; great-grandchildren, Teagan Faye Jones, Eleanor Vera Rooks, and Caiden James Steptoe; siblings, Margaret Louise Stauffacher and Ruth Elizabeth Mathis, as well as a number of nieces and nephews. Deborah was born in Savannah, Georgia and was preceded in death by her parents, Houston Eugene Holton, Sr. and Mildred Louise Woods Holton; grandson, Samuel Johnson; siblings, Barbara Ann Pritchard White, H.E. Holton, Jr., Doris Jeanette Burge, Carolyn Fonie Holton, and Mary Sue Holton. Deborah was a Baptist by faith. She was an active member of the Groves High School Reunion Committee. She worked at Southern Bell as a telephone operator from 1969 until 1971, and then began a 40 year career in logistics/international trade. She obtained her Customs House Brokerage license in 1988 and was the former president of the Savannah Traffic Club. She worked with GA Highway Express, AAA Cooper, Amazon Trading, D.J. Powers in Savannah and Charleston, , A.J. Fritz in Miami, Rogers and Brown and retired from Carmichael International. The visitation will be on Saturday, May 9, 2026 from 10 a.m. until 11 a.m. at the funeral home. The celebration of Deborah’s life will follow at 11 a.m. in the chapel of the funeral home In lieu of flowers remembrances may be given to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, 340 Eisenhower Drive, Building 200, Suite 220, Savannah, GA 31406. Deborah would want each of you to know the following, “If you remember anything of me, after I leave this world, remember that I loved even when it was foolish, that I cared even when it was unwanted. When my body is gone remember my heart.” Thomas C. Strickland & Sons Funeral Homes – WEST CHATHAM CHAPEL – 901 West Highway 80 – Pooler, Georgia (912) 748-2444