Cherokee Chronicle Times

Helen Baker


 

 

Helen Baker, age 87 of Cherokee, passed away Monday, Feb. 13, 2012 at Careage Hills in Cherokee after a short illness. Funeral services will be 10:30 a.m. on Friday, at the Immaculate Conception Catholic Church in Cherokee. Burial will be at St. Joseph’s Catholic Cemetery in Schaller, at 1 p.m. Friday following the service and lunch at the church. Visitation will begin at noon on Thursday today with the family present from 5 p.m. until 7 p.m. at Greenwood Funeral Home in Cherokee. There will be a prayer service at 7 p.m., also at the funeral home. Greenwood Funeral Home is assisting the family with the arrangements. Online condolences may be sent to the family at www.greenwoodfuneral.com.

Helen Marie Schott was born on Aug. 10, 1924 to parents William and Irene (Sampers) Schott. She attended Schaller Community Schools and graduated in 1942. She then worked in Ida Grove until her marriage to Ervel A. Baker in 1944. Three children were born to this marriage. Thomas Ervel, Donna Jean and Diane Marie.

Helen lived 32 years on a farm north of Schaller, where Ervel farmed. She and Ervel also owned and worked at Baker’s Cafe in Schaller. She later worked at Miller’s Grocery and then became a Nurse’s Assistant at Buena Vista County Hospital in Storm Lake. Helen moved to Storm Lake in 1978 and remained employed at the hospital there for 37 years until her retirement. In 2000 she moved to Cherokee, and in 2006 became a resident of Careage Hills Care Center.

Helen’s favorite pastime was gardening. She also enjoyed her times with friends from Schaller High School. Her children, grandchildren and great grandchildren were the most important part of her life and she considered them her greatest legacy. She was always proud of them and their accomplishments. She loved those who visited her at the care center and appreciated their kindness. She also found a new family in the people at Careage Hills. Her faith was the focus of her life, and Helen’s gift to all those she loved was her continued prayers and blessings.

Her parents, William and Irene Schott, husband Ervel Baker, son Thomas Baker, brother Richard Schott, sister Patricia Johnson, and three infant siblings, preceded her in death.

She is survived by Donna and Jim Lewallen Cherokee, and grandchildren James Lewallen, Madison, Wis.; Jennifer (Lewallen) and Jeff Rohlwing, and great-grandchildren Thea and Solenne of Middleton Wisconsin; Diane and Gene Baker, Crofton, Neb., and grandchildren Justin Nelson, Christin Nelson, and Emily Nelson of Omaha, Neb., and Jarod Nelson of Crofton, Neb.; daughter-in-law Donna Marie Baker, Holstein, and granddaughter Ann (Baker) and Cipriano (Leo) Villarreal and great-grandchildren Angelica, Neva, Gabriella and Karnita, Holstein; and granddaughter Tami (Baker) Disinger and great-grandchildren Cody, Cory, Carly, Caleb, and Carson of Delphi, Ind.; brother Lawrence Schott, Rice Lake, Wis.; and sister-in-law Phyllis Schott, Royal.

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