August 17, 1922 – Thursday, January 15, 2015

Service Information
St. Johns Evangelical Lutheran Church – Buffalo
Monday, January 19, 2015
2:00 pm

Visitation Information
St. Johns Evangelical Lutheran Church – Buffalo
Monday, January 19th, 2015
1:00 pm to 2:00 pm

Helen Mainquist, 92, formerly of Buffalo, died peacefully on January 15, 2015 at St. Andrew’s Village in Mahtomedi, Minnesota.
Helen Rose Marie Hoeger was born August 17, 1922 in Almont, North Dakota. Her parents were William F. and Caroline (Kaelberer) Hoeger, and their parents were German immigrants. She was baptized as Helene Rosa Maria Höger.
Helen attended school in Almont and graduated in 1940. She then earned a teaching certificate from Dickinson State Teachers College, Dickinson, North Dakota. Following graduation, she taught seventh and eighth grade in the ranch community of Brockway, Montana. After two years, she enrolled in Concordia College, Moorhead, Minnesota, and graduated in 1947 with a major in home economics and a minor in history. She taught home economics in Pillager and Park Rapids in northern Minnesota and moved to Buffalo in 1951 to become the Wright County home extension agent.
At an extension meeting, she met Evert Mainquist, a dairy farmer. They married in 1952 and made their home on Hillcrest Farm three miles east of Buffalo. They had three daughters – Linda, Sheri and Laurie – between 1952 and 1955. Three daughters close in age kept Helen busy, but she counted those years as the best ones of her life. Together, Evert and Helen farmed and raised a high-producing Holstein herd. In 1966, Helen returned to education and taught Buffalo’s second grade students until 1985.
In their retirement, Helen and Evert traveled to Europe, enjoyed buggy rides with their mules, and entertained friends and relatives at their home. Helen especially enjoyed keeping up with the news, her flower gardens, and the birds outside her kitchen window. Evert passed away in 1996, and Helen lived on their farm until 2010.
Helen is survived by children, Linda Mainquist, St. Paul, Sheri Mainquist, San Francisco, Laurie Mainquist (Tony Groble), Stillwater, Minnesota, along with grandchildren Erin Groble and Caroline Groble and many nephews and nieces. In addition to Evert, she was preceded in death by her parents and her five siblings, Fred, Henry, Ernest, Mary Ann, and Alice.
Helen’s memorial service will be held at St. John’s Lutheran Church, Buffalo, January 19, 2015 at 2:00 PM with a visitation starting at 1:00 PM. Gordon Diers, Vance Mainquist, Rollie Mills, Allen Buskey, Mary Wrynn, and Wendy Ely are serving as pallbearers. Helen will be buried in Lakeview Cemetery, Buffalo. Memorials to St. John’s Lutheran Church preferred.