Helen Marie Lee, 93, died at Prairie Manor Care Center in Blooming Prairie on June 22, 2008.
Helen was born March 22, 1915 to Ernest and Laura (Linse) Hargefeld in Claremont, Minn., where she grew up and attended school. She married Clarence Lee on April 11, 1934 at the St. Olaf parsonage in Austin. They made their home in the Blooming Prairie area where they raised five children. One son, Clyde, was killed in Viet Nam in 1967. The family moved to Blooming Prairie in 1968.
Helen was a cook at St. James Military Academy in Faribault, Owatonna State School and Cedarview Nursing Home in Owatonna. Clarence died on Sept. 26, 1986. Helen was a Gold Star Mother and member of American Legion Auxiliary, VFW Auxiliary and Royal Neighbors. She loved to bake, can fruits and vegetables, make rugs and lap robes, embroider and garden. She moved to Prairie Manor in September, 2004.
Survivors include three daughters: Maxine Sorenson, Owatonna, Minn., Barbara (Leighton) Nelson, Rochester, Minn., Verna Kubat, Blooming Prairie, Minn.; son: Curtis Lee, Owatonna, Minn.; four grandchildren: Mark (Doris) Kubat, Rochester, Minn.; Bryan (Kathy) Sorenson, Shakopee, Minn., Janell Nelson, Rochester, Minn., Kandee (Alec) Timmerman, St. Paul, Minn.; seven great-grandchildren: Ashley, Alyssa, Chad, Kyle, Katie, Avery and Donovan; brother, Harold Hargefeld.
She was preceded in death by her parents, Laura and Ernest Hargefeld; husband, Clarence; son, Clyde; son-in-law, Don Kubat; sister, Elda Halverson; three brothers, Robert, Ervin and Clarence Hargefeld.
Funeral services will be at 11 a.m., Wednesday at the First Lutheran Church in Blooming Prairie with Pastor Heidi Heimgartner officiating. Burial is at Blooming Prairie City Cemetery. Visitation is from 4 – 7 p.m., Tuesday (tomorrow) at Blooming Prairie Funeral Home.