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Submitted: 4/22/13 • Approved: 4/22/13 • Last Updated: 4/25/13 • R866085-G0-S3
August 31, 1941, Alva, Woods County, Oklahoma
August 3, 2009, Elizabeth, Fulton County, Arkansas
Son of Vern & Olga Hansen Nelson
Married Regina Louise Billings, December 29, 1978, Miami, Ottawa County, Oklahoma
Kansas City Star, Kansas City, Missouri, August 6, 2009:
Capt. Ronnie William Nicola "Nik"
NICOLA Captain Ronnie William "Nik" Nicola, 67, son of the late Vern and Olga (Hansen) Nelson, was born on August 31, 1941, in Alva, Okla. He departed this life on August 3, 2009, at his home in Elizabeth, Ark. Ronnie was united in marriage to Regina Louise Billings on December 29, 1978, in Miami, Okla.
He spent his working years in law enforcement, beginning in October 1967 with the Missouri State Highway Patrol. In 1970 he went to work with the sheriff's department in Clay County, Mo. He went from deputy to detective sergeant to captain, where he was one of the most well-known and respected members of the department. Capt. Nicola was the driving force in implementing Clay County's Special Tactics and Response Team, Community Action Team, Domestic Abuse Response Team, School Resource Deputy Unit and the DARE Unit, as well as heading up four additional units within the Clay County Sheriff's Office, and also served as a member of the Clay County Investigative Squad, the Kansas City Metro Squad and numerous law enforcement associations. Capt. Nicola served as a model officer to his fellow law enforcement brothers and sisters. He retired in January of 2009. He will be missed dearly. He leaves to mourn his passing: wife Regina Nicola of Elizabeth, Ark.; one son and two stepsons, Randy Nicola of the Kansas City area, Sonny Shane Eades of Liberty, Mo., and Shannon Spelman Eades of Searcy, Ark.; one brother and one half-brother, Wilbur Nelson (Edna) and Don Nelson, both of Ludington, Mich.; two sisters, Evelyn Sprieter of Flint, Mich., and Elsie Schroeder of Ludington, Mich.; mother-in-law Virginia Billings of Mountain Home, Ark.; brother-in-law Roger Billings (Tammy) of Elizabeth, Ark.; sister-in-law Merium Eades of Elizabeth, Ark.; two grandsons, Caleb Alexander Eades and Nickolas Canyon Eades; several nieces and nephews and a host of other relatives and friends. He was preceded in death by his parents.
Funeral services are Saturday, August 8, 2 p.m., at the Elizabeth Baptist Church in Elizabeth, Ark. Interment will be in the Elizabeth Cemetery under the direction of the Barker Funeral Home in Salem, Ark.
(Photo courtesy of Vera Reeves)
Contributed on 4/22/13 by maxparnell
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Record #: 866085