Helen Ophelia Nielsen Jessen
August 24, 2010
Memorial services for Helen Jessen will be held at Luther Memorial Church on Sunday, August 29 at 1:30 p.m. Helen died at Taylor House Hospice on August 24, 2010.
Helen was born in Aberdeen, SD, on June 24, 1923, to Alfred and Martha (Schmidt) Nielsen. The family subsequently lived in Minneapolis, MN, Storm Lake and Fort Dodge, IA, before moving to Des Moines in 1936. She graduated from Des Moines’ East High (1941), Grand View College and the University of Minnesota (1947), where she received a bachelor of science degree in library science and history. She was elected to Phi Alpha Theta, a national honorary history society. Helen was employed as a librarian at the College of Engineering at the University of Minnesota, at Macalester College, at Drake University and at the Des Moines Public Library.
Helen was united in marriage to Marvin P. Jessen on September 7, 1947. To this union two children were born: Carol Kellogg of St. Louis, MO, and David Jessen of Farragut, IA.
Helen was a true bibliophile. She enjoyed reading for the residents of the former Valborg Home and at Luther Park. She also regularly contributed book reviews to Church and Life, a publication of the Danish Interest Conference.
She was preceded in death by her parents; stepmother, Johanne Schmidt Nielsen; and brother, Glen Nielsen. Survivors include her husband, Marvin; daughter, Carol, and her husband, Ronald Kellogg; son, David; brother, Carl Nielsen, and his wife, Ingeline; granddaughters Alicia and Kristin Kellogg; and nieces and nephews. The body has been donated to Des Moines University, and the cremains will be interred at Highland Memory Gardens at a later date.
Memorials may be designated to Grand View University or Luther Memorial Church.
www.HamiltonsFuneralHome.com
Myrna Petersen Konajeski
08/27/2010
Dear Marvin,
It was so good to hear your voice this morning and have the chance to chat briefly about Helen. Keith and I are enormously glad we were able to visit with both of you in June when we drove Mother down to see you. Helen was alert and held up her part of the conversation, but her brave fight for life over such a long time had clearly taken its toll. I do believe she is now in a happier place.
In her obituary I see the face and life of the Helen I best remember -- always refined in her own manner and in the gracious way she kept her home. It's funny the things we remember, as when I was young it intrigued me that Helen referred to Uncle Alfred as "father," and that this is how Carol and David also referred to you, rather than my more casual references to "daddy." I identified with Helen's love of books, and was quite content to spend hours at the Des Moines Public Library. I think it was she who gave my twin sister and me a great tip, that we could check records out of the library, which we thought was a rich find because we loved listening to musicals.
Those were good days, with our families growing up together in Des Moines, and it has been a loss to be so far away in the last couple of decades. If we are not able to make it in from Baltimore tomorrow, we look forward to seeing you some time in the coming months. Our thoughts are with you, and with Cousin Carl, and Carol and Ron and David this weekend. Mother speaks of you often, and through her we are glad to keep up with you. Marvin, you have been wonderful for Helen the best -- always managing to keep your sense of humor along with your sense of duty, and that serves as a model for us all. Thank you and God bless Helen.
Sincerely,
Your cousin Myrna