Friesen, Helen Elizabeth Wiebe (1925-2009)

Mennonite Weekly Review obituary: 2009 Mar 16 p. 8

Birth date: 1925 Nov 3

text of obituary:

HELEN FRIESEN

Helen Elizabeth Friesen, 83, of Mountain Lake, Minn., died March 2, 2009, at Sogge Memorial Good Samaritan Center in Windom. She was born Nov. 3, 1925, in Wichita, Kan., and was adopted at the age of three months by John H. and Martha (Claassen) Wiebe of Whitewater, Kan.

After her graduation from Whitewater High School, she continued her education at Bethel College in North Newton, Kan. In June 1941, she was baptized at Emmaus Mennonite Church in Whitewater.

On Dec. 2, 1947, she married Willard Friesen, whom she met while at Bethel College, at Emmaus Mennonite Church. They made their home in Butterfield until 1990, when they moved to Mountain Lake.

She was a member of Bethel Mennonite Church in Mountain Lake, where she served as an organist, choir director, Sunday school teacher, Sunday school superintendent, on the music committee, and was a member of Worship and Sew. She was also active in many areas of the Northern District and General Conference Mennonite Church.

She had a special gift of music. She taught piano, was a member of the Butterfield PTA, participated in the Mountain Lake Choral Society, wrote a weekly column for the Observer/Advocate in Mountain Lake and Butterfield. She had several of her works published. She enjoyed reading, cooking, baking, sewing, knitting, crocheting, writing letters and music. She became a resident of Sogge Memorial Good Samaritan Center in Windom in August 2005.

Survivors include her husband, Willard Friesen of Mountain Lake; two sons, Douglas Friesen and his wife, Sandra, of Elkhart, Ind., and Alan Friesen and his wife, Charlene, of Webster, S.D.; a daughter-in-law, Patsy Friesen of St. Cloud; a sister, Agnes Harder of Whitewater; a brother, Willard Wiebe of Whitewater; two half sisters and a half brother, whom she met later in life and became friends with; 10 grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren.

She was preceded in death by a son, Donald Friesen, in 2008; and two brothers, Howard Wiebe and Eldon Wiebe.

Funeral service were held at Bethel Mennonite Church of Mountain Lake. Burial was in Mountain Lake Cemetery.