Helen E. Mead
October 16, 1939 – July 8, 2021
Survived by husband, Edward Mead; son, Michael Mead (Sue); daughter, Laura Boardman (Bill); grandchildren: Samuel and Gabrielle Mitchell, William and Caitlin Mead.
Family will receive friends Tuesday, July 13th from 4pm to 6pm at the West Center Chapel. Memorials are suggested to the Master Gardeners (Friends of Extension Foundation) or Josie Harper Hospice House. Complete notice later.
Helen was born on October 16, 1939, to Edward C. Brown and Elise Pinneo (Dudley) Brown in Caldwell, Idaho. She grew up on a ranch near Homedale, Idaho with her siblings Beverly Edwards, Kenn Brown and Lucy Kathleen Cammack.
Helen attended the College of Idaho for two years, and then transferred to Oregon State where she completed her degree in Chemistry. After graduation, she returned to her home in Homedale, Idaho where she taught high school for two years. She then decided to make a career change, so she left teaching and went to Iowa State University to pursue her Masters in Foods and Nutrition. It was at Iowa State where she met her husband Ed. They married on August 19, 1967, in Caldwell, Idaho. After they got married, they moved to Michigan, for Ed’s job. They welcomed their son, Michael in 1968 and daughter, Laura in 1970. The family moved to Bowling Green, Ohio, in 1973, Laramie, Wyoming in 1978 and finally made their home in Omaha, Nebraska in 1983. After staying home to raise her children, she returned to work at the Army Corps of Engineers in 1985 where she retired from her position of an Ecological Risk Assessor in 2005.
Retirement allowed her more time for her favorite hobbies like reading, cooking, and gardening. She started volunteering as a Master Gardener in 2006 and was a part of the horticulture helpline at the Nebraska Extension Office and continued to volunteer every year until 2019. She spent much of her summer researching and trying new canning recipes so they could enjoy their hard work throughout the year. She was also known for her amazing baked goods including her “Sticky Bottom” cinnamon rolls that were the favorite treat of her family. Helen loved to read and continued to be a lifelong learner until shortly before her death.
5 Comments
Our thoughts and prayers are with your family. Helen will be missed.
Blessings to your family, you will continue to be in my thoughts and prayers.
Thoughts and Prayers to the whole family. Helen was so wonderful and such a great person. She always made you feel welcome. She will be missed.
Blessings and prayers to you Ed, and your family. Although Helen and I haven’t been in touch for years, she will always hold a special place in my heart, as she was a dear friend to me for years. Her lovely disposition, sweet smile and infectious giggle, along with her bright wit will be sorely missed. RIP Helen.
My thoughts and prayers are with you and your family, Ed. Although Helen and I haven’t kept in touch for quite some time, she still holds a special place in my heart. Because of her, and her incredibly generous gift of time she allotted to me to help me through my computer problems at work,etc…I shall forever be grateful. Her delightful personality, sweet demeanor and intellect will be missed. RIP Helen
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