Janet Marie Helgaas

Janet Marie Helgaas died at home December 18, 2024, in Maple Grove, Minnesota. She was born January 15, 1939, in Hudson, South Dakota, to Elmer and Mildred Olbertson, and is survived by children Bjorn and Leanne, Bernt and Suzin, Anne and Matt, grandchildren Tait, Ellie, Cole, Nikolai, Britt, and Bryn, and great-granddaughter Marie.

Janet was a loving wife, mother, grandmother, and friend with many interests and talents. She gave her time to those in need, caring for relatives and visiting shut-in neighbors, always choosing to see the best in others. Growing up, we were proud of our mother, who taught parents as an early childhood educator, shared her expertise with others as a master gardener, and spread joy as an accomplished quilter, baker, and church organist. Coming home for the holidays was to enter a haven filled with freshly baked cookies and breads of all sorts, eat meals made entirely with produce from her gardens, and sleep under handmade quilts surrounded by her flowers and plants. What a privilege to read or talk in the darkness of the evening while her piano or organ music melded with the warmth from the wood burning stove to fill the house! Her faith, kindness, and emphasis on family and tradition continue to resonate with us as we watch our children become adults. While Janet’s memory faded in later years, her smile did not, and she remained thankful for those who visited, a gracious host to the end.

We hope she is again walking among her beloved prairie grasses, bundled up and secure in any weather, confident that after three years of searching she will find her husband when she returns safely to her final home.