Lucille Marie Helfter

Lucille Marie Helfter, age 78 of St. Henry, died accidentally Friday, June 24, 2016 at her cottage on Battle Lake. Mass of Christian Burial will be 10:00 a.m. on Wednesday, June 29 at St. Henry Catholic Church. Visitation will be Tuesday, June 28 from 4 to 8p.m. at the Le Center Funeral Home and will continue one hour prior to Mass on Wednesday at church. Interment will be in the church cemetery in St. Henry with Military Honors provided by the Le Center Honor Guard. A luncheon will follow at St. Mary's Catholic Church in Le Center. In lieu of flowers memorials are preferred.

Lucy was born on February 19, 1938 to Gregory and Evabell (Davidshofer) Kramer in St. Charles, MN. She was the fourth of seven children and grew up on their family farm. She went to a country school through the eighth grade and graduated from St. Charles High School in 1955. She attended the College of St. Teresa in Winona, MN and received her Bachelor of Science Degree in Nursing in 1959. Her clinical nursing experience was at St. Mary's Hospital in Rochester. She worked at the Veteran Administration Hospitals in New Orleans, LA, Palo Alto, CA and Minneapolis, MN. She taught in the nursing program at St. Mary's Junior College in Minneapolis for two years and was in the Air Force Reserves for three years serving with the Aeromedical Evacuation unit at the USAF Base in Minneapolis. She married Thomas Helfter on June 17, 1967. It was after that when she began her career in public health nursing starting in Ottertail County, MN. She started working for Le Sueur County Public Health in 1969. She was the Director of Public Health from 1978 until she retired in 2004. After that she worked part-time in Public Health Emergency Preparedness until retiring in 2014. She was active in the Altar Society, sang in the church choir, and served on the St. Henry Council. She was also a member of the Le Center Ambulance Commission and was on the Board of Directors for Le Sueur County Developmental Services. She enjoyed traveling, golfing, playing Bridge and planning and organizing family get-togethers.

Lucy is survived by her husband of 49 years, Tom; children, Joe (Beth) Helfter of Pepperell, MA, Nancy (Mark) Daubenberger of Woodbury, MN, and Judy (Pat) McDonald of Arden Hills, MN; 7 grandchildren, Paige, Eva, and Greta Helfter, Maria and Jacob Daubenberger, and Gus and Tate McDonald; siblings, Ed (JoAnn) Kramer of St. Charles, Millie (Stan) Dee of Rochester, Leo (Donna) Kramer of St. Charles, and Joan Pollema of St. Charles; and many other relatives and friends.

She is preceded in death by her parents; brother, Leonard Kramer; sister, Regina Leisen; and brother-in-law, Dave Pollema.

Arrangements are with the Le Center Funeral Home in Le Center. 507-357-6116. www.lecenterfuneralhome.com.