Sadly, Nell Hunt passed away on Sept. 30, 2018, after a long battle with dementia/Alzheimer’s disease. Born Nell Gabler on July 23, 1937, in Gardnerville, Nevada, she spent her childhood in and around the beautiful Lake Tahoe. She attended South Tahoe High School and graduated in 1954, valedictorian of her class.
After high school, she moved to San Francisco to attend business school and started dance lessons. The lessons paid off when she landed a job at the Bimbos 365 Club in San Francisco. It was there that she met her husband, radio and television personality Jerry Dexter. Her dance career included a tour with Marlena Dietrich, two years at the Sahara in Las Vegas and the Sammy Davis, Jr. show at Tahoe Harrah’s.
During her and Jerry’s marriage, they adopted two children, Jay and Jill. They settled in Los Angeles to raise their family, where Nell went to school to be a loan officer. However, Nell and Jerry ended getting divorced, and Nell moved to Santa Barbara with the children. She got a job at Home Savings and Loan, and through mutual friends she met Tom Hunt.
Their love of dancing and horseback riding brought them together, and they were married on Sept. 26, 1974. They made their home close to the beach, with horses and many other animals. In 1979, Tom had a business opportunity in Vail, so the family moved to Bellyache Ridge in Wolcott.
Nell worked at Land Title Guarantee Co. in Vail, and later in the Avon office. She and Tom opened Colorado Counseling, which handled the classes for court-ordered DUI and domestic violence convictions. They also had a bail bonds business together. They loved skiing, horseback riding and Lake Powell. In the 1990s, they started looking at property in the newly developing Lake of the Ozarks area in Missouri. In 1999 they retired and moved to Sunrise Beach, Missouri.
A few years ago, Nell was diagnosed with dementia, which progressed into Alzheimer’s disease. This is such a heartbreaking disease, taking the wonderful memories from such a smart and beautiful lady …
Nell is survived by her loving husband of 44 years, Tom Hunt, sisters, Michelle Gabler-Herz, of Reno, Nevada, and Stephanie Gabler, of Carson City, Nevada, son, Jay Dexter and daughter-in-law Linda Akers, of Delta, Alabama, and daughter, Jill Dexter-Guliano and son-in-law David Guliano, of Richland, Missouri. She is also survived by nieces Alicia Herz and Nadia Gabler-Carrillo, and nephews Hunter Atherton and Gabriel Herz, as well as her lifelong friend Patricia Gilbert, of Divide.
The family asks that, if you care to, make a donation to Alzheimer’s Association. Condolences may be sent to: P.O. Box 816, Richland, MO 65556.