Tieszen, Helena Deckert (1859-1948)

Mennonite Weekly Review obituary: 1948 Jan 29 p. 6

Birth date: 1859 Aug 10

text of obituary:

HELEN DECKERT TIESZEN

Helena Deckert Tieszen, daughter of William and Maria Schartner Deckert, was born August 10, 1859, in Jadwaninne, Russian Poland. In 1875 she with her parents migrated to America and settled in Kansas, from where they moved to South Dakota the following year, 1876. In the spring of 1879 she was baptized by Rev. John Schrag upon her confession of faith in Jesus Christ as her Savior.

On December 4, 1880, she was joined in holy matrimony with Derk P. Tieszen. They lived on a farm adjoining the parental home of her husband Rev. Tieszen served in the Bethesda church, Marion, S. D., as minister and elder for nearly 50 years.

This union was blessed with 13 children, four of whom preceded in death. In 1925 they moved to Marion. They celebrated their golden wedding anniversary in 1930. In the fall of 1945 they made sale and moved to Freeman to live with their youngest daughter, where her husband passed away in 1946. The last nine months she lived with the youngest son and family on the farm where she had lived so many years before.

On May 16, 1947, she had an attack of pneumonia from which she never quite recovered. In October of the same year she became ill again, from which she rallied somewhat, but on December 10 she had a relapse and began to fail quite rapidly. She was severely ill the last nine days, but was conscious until the time of her departure. She often expressed the longing to go home to be with her Savior. This desire was fulfilled when she passed away in serene peace on January 12, 1948, at 4:10 p.m., after having attained a ripe old age of 88 years, five months and two days.

She is survived by nine children: Abraham, Anna (Mrs. Dan Becker), John and Benjamin of Marion, Susana (Mrs. Toby Becker) of Dolton, Derk of Albany. N.Y., Eva (Mrs. O. C. Krehbiel) of Hutchinson, Kansas, Agnetha (Mrs. L. H. Linscheid) and Amalia (Mrs. J. D. Unruh) of Freeman; and two sisters, Mrs. Jacob Koehn and Mrs. Cornelius Unruh of Marion; 38 grandchildren and four great-grandchildren, besides many relatives and friends. — The Children.

The Mennonite obituary: 1948 Feb 10 p. 12