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Niela "Dakota" Eliason, was born
in N Dakota in 1930 and married on 9/12/52, the same day and year as Kennedy.
She received her RN degree in Denver, and several years later, accompanied
her husband to his Navy base in the Phillipines. Eliason has been swimming
since high school,
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receiving her lifesaving badge while overseas.
Their next move was to St Petersburg, FL. She has competed, but prefers
the fitness aspect of Masters swimming. She regularly logs in her miles
for the Key West Challenge. Eliason enjoys writing and earned her BA in
English at USF, in 1980. She does free lance writing for the St Pete Times.
Recently, she wrote an impressive article about the historical Lewis and
Clark Trail. She and her husband experienced the trail, first hand on a
summer trip. Several of her short stories were published in 1990. She wrote
"Kitchen Tables and Other Midlife Musings," a book on how to be
middle-aged and get away with it. Eliason follows a true Maverick approach
to life, which enhances her outlook as a vegetarian, atheist and nudist.
She belongs to Save Our Strays, which provides foster care for homeless
cats. In three years, she has taken care of 40 cats. At the Spring Awards,
the Mavericks honored her with the 1999 Fitness Swimmer Award. She and her
husband live in St Petersburg. To learn about Niela's book, "Kitchen
Tables & Other Midlife Musings,