Nannie Margaret Ellis Houser

Elmer Andrew Houser, Jr. and his wife, Nannie Margaret Ellis Houser, will be laid to rest in their native Knoxville, Tennessee. Elmer Andrew (Bud) Houser, Jr., born in Knoxville on Aug. 9, 1926, to Elmer Andrew Houser, Sr. and Leila Gertrude Cruz Houser, died peacefully at home in Tamarac, Florida, on Saturday, Dec. 19, 2015, at age 89. His beloved wife of 65 years, Nannie (Nan) Margaret Ellis Houser, born in Portsmouth, Ohio, on Jan. 13, 1925, to Joseph Edward Ellis and Maria Isabella Poetker Ellis, and raised in Knoxville, also died at their home, on Feb. 02, 2016, at age 91, after a brief illness. Elmer served in the U.S. Navy during WW II. He graduated from the University of Tennessee with a B.S. in Electrical Engineering. He married Nan in Knoxville on Jan. 14, 1950, and took a position with the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission in Oak Ridge. In 1966 he received the General Electric Computer Simulation Symposium Authorship Award for Simulations of Space Vehicle Checkout and Countdown while working with General Electric on the Apollo program. He moved his family to Washington, D.C., where he provided intelligence services for the Defense Department, Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command (SPAWAR), Navy Command Systems Support Activity (NAVCOSSACT) Navy Regional Data Automation Center (NARDAC) and Naval Electronics System Command (NAVELEX). He retired from the government in 1986 after 30 years of distinguished service, and moved to Florida. Elmer was an avid stamp and coin collector, but his greatest passion was genealogy, which resulted in works such as “The Descendents of John Houser, 1709-1763,” published in 1991 with Nan as co-author. Nannie worked for several commercial organizations during their marriage, culminating with 17 years as publication billings manager for National Geographic Society. An orchid enthusiast, keeping her own hothouse to cultivate flowers, she was always busy with a wide variety of projects at home. Elmer and Nannie Houser were devoted parents to their loving children, Ann Katsuyoshi, Betty Calomiris, Linda Stegall, and Joseph A. Houser. They are also mourned by six grandchildren and three great grandchildren. The family and friends will gather at 12:45 pm Saturday February 20, 2016, at Woodlawn Cemetery for 1:00 pm graveside services with Rev. Amy C. Figg officiating. The online obituary may be viewed and condolences made at www.rosemortuary.com. Requiescat in pace.

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Nannie Margaret Ellis Houser

January 13, 1925 - February 2, 2016