Fifty years ago, Richard L. "Dick" Nelson started his career with a small loader.
He established his business in Princeton, Illinois, a small rural community with a current population of 7,600.
today, he is the founder of Nelson Enterprises which includes Advanced Asphalt Company, TCI Manufacturing and Sales, Tri-Con Materials, Northwest Illinois Construction LLC, Pavement Maintenance Services, Inc., D&J Leasing and AAA Aviation LLC.
Nelson Enterprises has achieved $1.5 billion in total sales, has worldwide patent recognition, employs approximately 300 people and rents 100 trucks a day during construction season.
Dick is the son of Malcolm and Frances Nelson (both deceased) and was raised in Princeton with five siblings (three of whom are deceased).
He is a graduate of Princeton High School and served in the Army.
He and his wife, Judy, have three grown children, Leanne (Jeff) Martin, Laurie Wallace and Steve (Gina) Nelson. They also have four grandchildren, Nicole Martin, Kelsey Wallace, Colin and Audrey Nelson.
Dick attributes much of his success to his "team" of talented and dedicated professionals.
He has also achieved success and national awards because of his God given mechanical talent, hard work, determination and what he calls a "Bachelor of Common Sense Degree from Life University."
Dick has contributed a multitude of volunteer service hours to the Princeton Park Board, United Way, Cub Scouts, Little League and St. Matthew's Church.
His passion is flying. And to that end, he built his own helicopter.
In honor of his 50th anniversary in business, an open house was held to recognize his "team" and business milestones. At this event, the Nelson family established an annual scholarship at Princeton High School for a senior student planning to attend a vocational school.
Doug Oberhelman, CEO of Caterpillar, was also in attendance at the open house and announced that Caterpillar will match the Nelson family annual scholarship. This is a tribute to the Nelson family and Nelson Enterprises for service to the community, central Illinois and the State of Illinois.

All 15 episodes from the first season of the '70s Western TV series following the adventures of outlaws Kid Curry (Ben Murphy) and Hannibal Heyes (Pete Duel) as they try to go straight with the help of the local governor. Having to stay out of trouble to achieve amnesty, the two men change identity to avoid detection but can't seem to kick the habit. The episodes are: 'Alias Smith and Jones', 'The McCreedy Bust', 'Exit from Wickenburg', 'Wrong Train to Brimstone', 'The Girl in Boxcar #3', 'The Great Shell Game', 'Return to Devil's Hole', 'A Fistful of Diamonds', 'Stagecoach Seven', 'The Man Who Murdered Himself', 'The Root of It All', 'The Fifth Victim', 'Journey from San Juan', 'Never Trust an Honest Man' and 'The Legacy of Charlie O'Rourke'.

All 23 episodes from the second season of the '70s Western TV series following the adventures of outlaws Kid Curry (Ben Murphy) and Hannibal Heyes (Pete Duel) as they try to go straight with the help of the local governor. Having to stay out of trouble to achieve amnesty, the two men change identity to avoid detection but can't seem to kick the habit. The episodes are: 'The Day They Hanged Kid Curry', 'How to Rob a Bank in One Hard Lesson', 'Jailbreak at Junction City', 'Smiler With a Gun', 'The Posse That Wouldn't Quit', 'Something to Get Hung About', 'Six Strangers at Apache Springs', 'Night of the Red Dog', 'The Reformation of Harry Briscoe', 'Dreadful Sorry Clementine', 'Shootout at Diablo Station', 'The Bounty Hunter', 'Everything Else You Can Steal', 'Miracle at Santa Marta', '21 Days to Tenstrike', 'The McCreedy Bust: Going, Going, Gone', 'The Man Who Broke the Bank at Red Gap', 'The Men That Corrupted Hadleyburg', 'The Biggest Game in the West', 'Which Way to the O.K. Corral?', 'Don't Get Mad, Get Even', 'What's in It for Mia?' and 'Bad Night in Big Butte'.

For centuries, the mythical story of the Greek Trojan Horse has become a metaphor for the covert infiltration of an enemy's organization. In this action-packed spy thriller, FBI Agent Brad Tilsdale and his special counter-intelligence team work tirelessly to prevent foreign enemies from penetrating the U.S. government. An ex-Navy SEAL, Tilsdale heads a group of agents that confront the Soviet KGB and Chinese MSS intelligence services, Al-Qaeda terrorists, and - most deadly of all - spies working secretly within the U.S. government. Tilsdale constantly finds himself hobbled by timid bureaucrats, who avoid making difficult decisions until it is too late, while opportunities evaporate. When he decides to "go rogue" and operate outside of the system, he walks a fine line with his cautious superiors, who would rather sacrifice him than expose themselves to risk. While Tilsdale operates on the periphery of tumultuous global events, the story rushes from one national crisis to the next. On a parallel track, the Trojan Horse conspirators move their plot inexorably forward. Through sheer determination and personal courage, Tilsdale attempts to protect America - often from itself. From a deadly knife-fight in the murky back-streets of Hong Kong, through dangerous anti-terrorist raids, to the equally dangerous marble corridors of Washington power-brokers, Tilsdale weaves and dodges his way to solving the greatest mystery of his career: Who is Pegasus, and what is he plotting to do? Following a muddled trail of lies, buried evidence, murdered witnesses, and forged documents, Tilsdale and his FBI partner finally discover the truth - but too late to save Air Force One from sabotage. From communication intercepts captured by the National Security Agency, he pieces together, in Sherlock Holmes fashion, a puzzle of frightening dimensions and shocking implications. Learning that his own superior within the Bureau is a Russian spy, Tilsdale unleashes a ruthless effort to stop f

Fifty years ago, Richard L. "Dick" Nelson started his career with a small loader.
He established his business in Princeton, Illinois, a small rural community with a current population of 7,600.
today, he is the founder of Nelson Enterprises which includes Advanced Asphalt Company, TCI Manufacturing and Sales, Tri-Con Materials, Northwest Illinois Construction LLC, Pavement Maintenance Services, Inc., D&J Leasing and AAA Aviation LLC.
Nelson Enterprises has achieved $1.5 billion in total sales, has worldwide patent recognition, employs approximately 300 people and rents 100 trucks a day during construction season.
Dick is the son of Malcolm and Frances Nelson (both deceased) and was raised in Princeton with five siblings (three of whom are deceased).
He is a graduate of Princeton High School and served in the Army.
He and his wife, Judy, have three grown children, Leanne (Jeff) Martin, Laurie Wallace and Steve (Gina) Nelson. They also have four grandchildren, Nicole Martin, Kelsey Wallace, Colin and Audrey Nelson.
Dick attributes much of his success to his "team" of talented and dedicated professionals.
He has also achieved success and national awards because of his God given mechanical talent, hard work, determination and what he calls a "Bachelor of Common Sense Degree from Life University."
Dick has contributed a multitude of volunteer service hours to the Princeton Park Board, United Way, Cub Scouts, Little League and St. Matthew's Church.
His passion is flying. And to that end, he built his own helicopter.
In honor of his 50th anniversary in business, an open house was held to recognize his "team" and business milestones. At this event, the Nelson family established an annual scholarship at Princeton High School for a senior student planning to attend a vocational school.
Doug Oberhelman, CEO of Caterpillar, was also in attendance at the open house and announced that Caterpillar will match the Nelson family annual scholarship. This is a tribute to the Nelson family and Nelson Enterprises for service to the community, central Illinois and the State of Illinois.

"Contrails" are those silvery white tracks left in the sky by the engine exhaust condensation of high-altitude aircraft. They show where the airborne traveler is going, as well as where he has been. They define the journey, conducted at high speed, where the air is thin and danger is always lurking. This was the harsh testing-ground for a father and his son, from a family of Swedish immigrants---unlikely participants in the armed conflicts that would consume the world in their respective lifetimes.
The saga of the Nelson family contains joy and sorrow, triumph and tragedy, and ample quantities of humorous stories. It is a case study in how wars cut deeply into a family's heart and soul, and often destroy the bonds that normally exist.
The book traces Wendel Nelson's idealistic quest to become a World War II fighter pilot and defend democracy from fascism. As an American volunteer in the RAF, his exploits range from the Battle of Britain to the North African campaign against Rommel, and then fighter sweeps into Europe in the final years of the war.
His son, Dick, documents his experiences at the U.S. Naval Academy, Naval flight training, and the Vietnam air war. The impact of war on the families involved is described in poignant detail. The lifestyle of the modern combat pilot is described in both hilarious and sad episodes, where fiery death was always around the corner.
This book also describes in detail the family's involvement with World War II, and its effect on Dick and his mother. The stories show the full impact of a war's lost sons and fathers on the families they leave behind. There are rarely happy endings in such stories---mostly, there are only lucky escapes at best. The reader should remember that war is about destruction, not creation; fear, as well as courage; and hatred, as well as love. It is a process of violent human extremes, and not for the squeamish.
In hindsight, most wars seem easy to diagnose as caused by missteps, lapses in judgment, and hidden agendas. But for the immediate participants and decision-makers, the initiation of war always seems---at the time---to be warranted and necessary. Even when war is unavoidable for national survival, it is almost always permeated by a number of incompetent decisions, lack of leadership courage, and cynical motives.
The wars that impacted the Nelsons---World War II and Vietnam---demonstrated war's cruel fallacies in many ways. Wars are normally not won in quick, bloodless victories. The winner is usually the one that makes the least mistakes along the way, and is still standing at the end. That is why the doctrine evolved by some of the greatest military strategists---from William Tecumseh Sherman to Colin Powell---advocated the immediate application of overwhelming force on the enemy to force resolution. Sherman wrote, "I want peace, and believe it can only be reached through union and war, and I will ever conduct war with a view to perfect and early success."
From the swirling dog-fights of the Battle of Britain to the bloody skies over North Vietnam, the Nelsons put their lives on the line to serve the country they loved. Wendel lost his life in the last months of his war, when his P-51 Mustang was caught in a blinding snow storm. Twenty years later, Dick followed in his footsteps and became a Navy carrier pilot, flying the supersonic F-8E Crusader into combat from an aircraft carrier. He was lucky and survived that conflict, while many did not.
Another aspect of war is its painful impact on the families that are swept up in its whirlwind of violence. The story begins with a young Swedish carpenter's classic search for a better life in America. Enjoy the journey