Helen A. Funk

Helen Ardyce Akerson Funk, one of the kindest, most loving Christian people you will ever know. A very nice Christian, Christ-like lady. You may not believe what I am about to tell you about Helen, but it is all true.

First in the life of Helen Funk is Jesus Christ. She was taught to live and act as Christ did, in a pure and loving manner. Helen lived her life following His example.

She never tasted alcohol, not once in her life. Of course, she never smoked.

No one ever heard Helen Funk utter one curse word in her entire life, not even the word hell or damn.

Can you remember one word? You knew her. Wasn't she a lot like Christ in the way she lived?

Helen never said one bad word about anyone in her entire life. More likely when Helen spoke you would hear her praising her children, giving encouragement to a sick friend, asking how things were going for you, or signing a hymn.

Most importantly, Helen learned Love, from the example of Jesus Christ. . She gave the love of Jesus Christ freely and openly to everyone who crossed her righteous path. She was always there to aid the sick, to lend a hand to the meek, to pray for someone in trouble.

She was a kind and friendly person to everyone she met.

Her rich and steadfast love of Christ formed a foundation for the finest, most important work of Helen Funk's life. Everyone who knows Helen, knows what that is. . Her Family.

Helen's love for her family was outstanding, undying, unconditional, unmitigating. Her family was her life on this Earth, as given through the love of God and guided by the Lord Jesus Christ.

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Funk, Nebraska to Antelope Springs, Colorado 1917 to 1956

Helen Ardyce Akerson was born to Roy T. and Frances Akerson in Funk, Nebraska on August 22, 1917. She was their first child. next would come, Sisters Ruby and Jo Ann. She helped set the example in the Akerson Christian family home for her two younger sisters.

They moved to Brush, Colorado in 1925 where her Dad worked at the grain elevator. She played the piano at the First Christian Church and was a cheerleader and a good student at Brush High School.

During her Junior year a handsome, young fellow from the farm out north noticed Helen and asked if he could meet her parents and take her to church. That young man was Kenneth Funk. Helen and Ken graduated as Brush Beetdiggers in the class of 1935 stayed together in love for the rest of their lives.

In Dec 1937, they became Mr. and Mrs. Kenneth M Funk. The marriage was a solid Christian-based one and lasted 58 years until Ken expired. Her children never heard fighting or arguing or worried about Mom and Dad getting a divorce. Helen was Love, the Love of Jesus Christ. Her home was one of love for her family. Support to the point where her children felt that they could do no wrong, that anything would be possible for them to achieve. Helen's love for her family unwavering, steadfast, unconditional and never ending.

Oh course there was discipline, too. It came in the form of disappointing Mom, disappointing Jesus If you were not loving and kind and giving at all times, you might feel guilty or make Mom sad and you didn't want that. She was so nice to everyone and always so loving, so sensitive. She might cry easily, her feelings left to bare. No one wanted to disappoint Mom.

Nothing was more important to Helen Funk than Jesus and her family.

After they got married in Brighton in 1937, they bought a piece of grassland 16 miles north of Brush in Antelope Springs. There place was one mile down the road from Dad's Brother Orville's farm and two miles down from Grandpa Funk's place.

They raised cattle on the dry pasture land, irrigated the land for wheat, raised chickens and pigs anything to get along out there in the windy dry plains of Northeastern Colorado. Helen thought her children how to work hard and persevere. You had no choice out there.

Helen would cringe and cry, but she cut off the heads of the chickens and throw their feathered bodies into the 55 gallon drum of boiling water for plucking. The kids had to run around and catch them first.

She drove the family station wagon, as the school bus, 10 miles back and forth into Snyder each day for all the kids of Antelope Springs. She was the 4-H leader and active in church always with her piano and singing.

In Dec 1939 their first was born, Janyce La Rue. In May 1942, their first son Robert Marvin. And in April of 1948 their youngest son, Douglas Kenneth.

There were family dinners on Helen's side with Sister Ruby (Bob Miller )and their four children Sister Joann (Ray Russell) gave her four more nieces and nephews to love.

Every Saturday in Brush was the Funk Family dinner at Grandpa's house, Harry and Mabel Funk . Helen would always make her favorite dish, fried chicken in butter and onions. It was the family favorite too. Kenny's Brother Orville and wife Wanda gave Helen four Funk nieces and nephews. Joy, Kenny's sister, married Gerald Zollars. God blessed Helen with nine more nieces and nephews from that union.

Jesus' love, prayer, home- cooked food, no alcohol, Pepsi , of course for Mom who loved Pepsi, Rook, ( no playing cards, that’s a sin) Croquet, and visiting with relatives were on the menu at the Funk Family dinners in Brush

All in all Helen loved 9 brothers and sisters (by blood or marriage), 3 grandchildren, 3 great grandchildren, 5 great great grandchildren 23 nieces and nephews, 41 great nieces and nephews and 10 great great nieces and nephews. That is more than 100 relatives.... a loving legacy for Helen.

Ken and Helen farmed out in Antelope Springs as long as they could with hardly any rain. By 1956, Kenny had had enough and found a job with Gates Rubber Company up on South Broadway in Denver. From the sale of the farm, they bought a new house in Littleton in Brookridge Heights.

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Littleton 1956 to present

5360 S Sherman. They raised their family there in the rather innocent, pristine, hilltop community where Mt Evans and the blue Colorado sky were easily visible from the front picture window of the house. . Helen worked at Montgomery Wards on Broadway for 27 years supervising the Reconditioning Dept.

But besides working outside the home her whole life, Helen's main focus was still church and family. She was a member at First Methodist in Littleton for 30 years, then 25 years here at Sheppard of the Hills Lutheran. She recently still attended Konia and the Ladies lunches.

She made sure her kids were enrolled and active in school and their activities in Littleton. Kenny loved sports and they would never miss any of their children's athletic or academic activities. Their kids were ushers at the church. They always knew they had the love and support of Jesus and their Mother and Father at all times, no matter what.

In the Summer on their vacations, they loved to pack the family in their stations wagon, like the 1956 Ford with the wooden panels on the side and drive the new highways to Alabama to visit relatives. They took the kids to California to see the ocean and even once all the way down to Acapulco, Old Mexico in 1961. They would take the family to the mountains for fishing and picnicking. Drive down to Brush for the family dinners. They were always loving, wholesome family, activities for Helen Funk, the same way Jesus Christ had lived.

In 1957 her daughter Jan was married to Bill Chapman. From that marriage came Helen's two grandchildren, David Chapman and Deanyce (Steve Howard). Deanyce had three great grand children for Helen. Now, two of those three girls presented five great- great grand children for Helen to love. They live in Spokane, WA. David now lives in Houma, Louisiana. He lived with and cared for Helen for many years after Kenny's death.

Kenny and Helen were able to retire at age 62 in 1979. They purchased a home in Arizona and became snowbirds with all the Funk and Day cousins who also migrated there to retire. That gave them 16 relaxing, fun-filled years of good times, not working, enjoying the Sun, playing cards, croquet, board games and having picnics with the cousins. Then Kenny died in 1995. After that, Helen lived with her son Douglas in Littleton until 2009. She then lived with and was very well cared for by Light House Assisted Living just very near here to the church.

Daughter Jan lived with Joan Feller near Conifer, CO for 27 years before passing away in 2009. Helen always considered Joanie to be her stepdaughter, part of her family.

Also tragically preceding Helen in death her oldest son, Robert died in a car crash in 1961 at only 19 years of age. Those days as well as the death of Kenny in May 1995 were the worst in Helen's life. To see her family part, to be away from her, left Helen with much sorrow and now she is with them again and can see the face of Jesus also. God Bless her!

Her two greatest friends who remained at her side until the very end , are Dorothy Steil from the church and Elaine Loomis.

At 94, Helen is survived in her immediate family by only Joan Feller, step-daughter, her son Douglas, his wife, May Raquel and their son, Aldrich Nelson of the Philippines.

Helen Ardyce Akerson Funk, a very nice Christian lady who lived her life in love, as Christ had done.

A wonderful wife, mother, sister, grandmother, aunt.... a helpful loving friend to all.

HELEN ARDYCE AKERSON FUNK 1917 to 2012