September 24, 1920 - August 6, 2016

Helen Viola Wagner, of Mount Vernon, Washington, passed away peacefully in her sleep on August 6, 2016, just a few weeks shy of her 96 th birthday. She was born on September 24, 1920, in Hardy, Nebraska, to Morris and Petra Mortensen. She grew up on the family farm with her four sisters and one brother. After graduating from high school she worked as a secretary at the air base in Alliance, Nebraska, at the beginning of WWII. Then she went to college on a full scholarship at the University of Nebraska at Kearney, where she received her BA degree in education in 1947. In June of that year she married Reuben Wagner, while still in Kearney, and then taught high school English in Exeter, Nebraska.

After living in Des Moines, Iowa, and Glen Ellyn, Illinois, for a few years each, in the summer of 1957 they moved with their two boys to Moscow, Idaho, where her husband taught accounting at the University of Idaho until his death in 1968. Helen taught English and social studies at the Moscow Junior High School from 1962 until her retirement in 1982. She was a very popular teacher and many students have told her over the years that she was their favorite teacher of all time. After her retirement, she volunteered at the Gritman Hospital and for the UI Alumni Association, as well as taking many trips with the Road Runners travel club.

In 2000 Helen moved to Mount Vernon, Washington, to be closer to her son and daughter-in-law, Peter and Shelley. She lived at both the Mtn. Glen and Alpine Ridge retirement centers, for about 8 years each, and then at the Mira Vista Care Center for the last 5 months. She also attended the Mount Vernon Church of the Nazarene for as long as she was able. At all these places she was dearly loved because of her sweet disposition, gratefulness, and positive attitude. She will also be remembered for her sense of humor, her one-liners, her inability to keep Christmas presents a secret, and her famous brownies, which were always delicious, even though she always claimed "they just didn't turn out quite right". The family would like to express their appreciation to Helen's caregivers, and the staffs of Alpine Ridge, NW Regional Council, Mira Vista and Hospice of the Northwest for all their help over the last few years of her declining health.

Helen was preceded in death by her parents, her husband, her sisters - Gladys Mortensen, Ruth Lawrence, Lydia Foreman, and Edna Christensen, and her brother Morris (Bud) Mortensen. She is survived by her sister, Darlene Knipping of Chandler, Arizona, her sons, Brent Wagner of Ann Arbor, Michigan, and Peter (Shelley) Wagner of Mount Vernon, Washington, 3 grandchildren (Aaron, Gabe, and Collin) and 6 great-grandchildren.