Carol Anne Nilsen died December 28, 2014, from a sudden illness in her seasonal home in Upper Ajijic. Nilsen was born on July 16, 1941, in Seattle, Washington, and lived her entire life there. She was a talented violinist and fiddler. She and her husband, Sven, started an informal group in Ajijic that played old time fiddle and bluegrass music. Nilsen loved to travel, and after retirement she and Sven used Ajijic as a stepping off place to visit Peru, many archaeological ruins in Mexico and just this year, Ecuador, where her son Steven accompanied them.
Nilsen was an elementary school teacher and an administrator at the University of Washington. She leaves behind her husband, Sven, her sons Steven of Newport Beach, California, and Peter of British Colombia as well as her grandchildren Jane and Eric.
Nilsen was a kind and thoughtful person, who walked through life in a kind and thoughtful way. She will be sorely missed by her family and the friends she made in Ajijic.