Helen Marie Brown of Silver Lake, Indiana went home to be with her Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, on Easter Morning at 5:00 a.m. on Sunday, April 17, 2022 at the age of 82.
She was born on February 16, 1940, in Mode, Illinois. She was one of ten children born to Hazel Mildred (Quicksall) Kessler and Irvin Lee Kessler. On March 21, 1964, she married Harold Hasley Brown. They were blessed with 58 years of anniversaries and a lifetime of adventures before she passed away.
Helen graduated from Asbury College in Kentucky with a B.A. degree. After college she taught for two years at Sullivan Elementary School in Illinois, and for five years at Des Moines Christian School in Iowa. The Lord led Helen and her husband to spend 33 years in pastoral ministry. They served as missionaries with World Gospel Mission, where she taught in Bolivia.
She loved to garden and had a phenomenal green thumb especially for her favorite, African violets. Helen loved her house plants, quilting, and was a wonderful cheerleader for her grandkids sporting events. She enjoyed the fellowship of her church family at Winona Lake Community Church. In the past she was a Sunday school teacher and volunteered for children’s ministries. Helen was a devoted wife, mother, grandmother, sister and a friend to many. She would most want to be remembered for her faith in her Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
She will be lovingly remembered by her husband, Harold Hasley Brown (Silver Lake, Indiana), daughter, Mary Helen (Rick) Gensch (Pierceton, Indiana), three grandchildren: Wesley (Hannah) Gensch (Chicago, Illinois), Elizabeth Gensch (Pierceton, Indiana), Timothy Gensch (Pierceton, Indiana), and one great-grandchild: Levi Charles Gensch (Pierceton, Indiana). Also surviving are two sisters, Janice Cordell (Sullivan, Illinois), Carol Reardon (Dayton, Ohio), two brothers, Don (Ann) Kessler (Mode, Illinois), and Roger (Wanda) Kessler (Mode, Illinois). She was preceded in death by her parents, two brothers, three sisters, and her infant daughter Elizabeth Joy Brown who they cherished for two and a half days before she passed away in 1975.
Visitation will be held from 4:00 – 7:00 p.m. on Wednesday, April 20, 2022 at Redpath-Fruth Funeral Home, 225 Argonne Road, Warsaw, Indiana. Helen’s life will be celebrated at 11:00 a.m. on Thursday, April 21, 2022 at Winona Lake Community Church, 902 College Avenue, Winona Lake, Indiana and officiated by Pastor Rick Hurley. Helen will be laid to rest at 3:00 p.m. (CST) on Friday, April 22, 2022 at Stewardson Cemetery in Stewardson, Illinois.
Memorial donations may be directed to Free Methodist Church World Ministry Center, 770 N High School Road, Indianapolis, IN 46214.
Online condolences may be sent through the funeral home’s website at www.redpathfruthfuneralhome.com.
