Dorothy Helmke, daughter of Adolph and Elizabeth (Haijsman) Krieger, was born Oct 5, 1927, at Blairsburg, Iowa and passed away on December 9, 2021, at Windsor Manor in Estherville, Iowa, at the age of 94. Dorothy’s early education was conducted in a rural one room schoolhouse followed by her graduation at Blairsburg, Iowa High School.
Dorothy attended a dance at the Clear Lake Ballroom, in Clear Lake, Iowa where she met a 25-year-old WWII veteran, Junior Helmke. Junior and Dorothy were married in 1947 and settled in Swea City.
Dorothy and Junior continued and expanded the farming enterprise that Junior had started. Dorothy worked alongside her husband for many years until she retired from the physical work and acted as the farm business accountant.
Dorothy and Junior had four children, Michael, Douglas, LeAnn, and Rhonda. Dorothy is predeceased by her husband, Junior Helmke; her parents; her brother and sister-in-law, Francis and Ginny Krieger; her sister and brother-in-law, Lorraine and Joseph Gowdy, and her two sons, Mike Helmke and Doug (Sharon) Helmke.
Dorothy is survived by daughters, LeAnn Krumwiede (Lance) of Estherville, Iowa, and Rhonda (Richard) Wydeven, of Falls Church, VA; daughter-in-law, Sharon Helmke of Armstrong; grandchildren, Michelle (Nate) Wright and their children, Jackson and Emma, Mitchell Krumwiede, Vanessa Wydeven, Chad Helmke, Danielle Helmke and niece and nephews, Jack, Patricia, and Tom Gowdy.
Dorothy was a long-time member of St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Armstrong, Iowa and the General Federation of Women’s Clubs and a Girl Scout volunteer. Dorothy’s hobbies included reading, attending plays, and collecting cookbooks. She enjoyed big band music, Willie Nelson and appreciated Tom Selleck, later to be replaced by George Clooney.
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