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I love that I was able to take this portrait of Nell on her 95th birthday. She wasn't sure if she liked it but her family and I knew it was a keeper. Here is a bio -
Born Jonell (Nell) Seargeant in San Antonio; April 18, 1916. The oldest of five children and only girl.
Her father served in WW I, returning home after the Allied occupation of Germany to Brackettville, Texas, where Nell grew up on the family ranch, which is now Kickapoo Cavern State Park. When she became old enough for school, the family began living in to town during the school year so the children could attend.
Married A. H. "Fred" Walker in 1937. They had met while Fred was at Ft. Clark for summer cavalry training as a cadet at Texas A&M.
As a couple, their first "house" was a converted bank which still had big vault doors, on main street in Van Horn, Texas, where Fred was a county agent. Because there wasn't much to do in the way of entertainment in Van Horn they would go out on the highway, where they could get better radio reception, and dance.
They had one daughter, JoAnne, born in 1938.
During WW II, her husband Fred's B-24 bomber was shot down over Germany and he was a POW.
After the war, the family moved to College Station where Fred worked for the Texas Agricultural Extension Service and Nell was JoAnne's girl scout troop leader. Every three to four weeks Nell and Fred would drive over eight hours to Val Verde County where Fred ranched sheep, goats, and cattle at his family's ranch. Early on, Nell was never content to stay at the house during deer hunting season and was the first woman at the ranch to hunt, proving herself to be a deadly shot with a Winchester 270 rifle with open sights.
Nell has always loved children and enjoys playing the piano and hunting for Indian artifacts.
She now enjoys living in the Texas Hill Country. | 
