Esther Elizabeth Helland

Esther Elizabeth Helland was born on April 12, 1925 in Detroit, MI to the late Reverend Edwin E. and Leila Rossow (Graff). She passed away peacefully in her sleep on February 16, 2022 at the age of 96.

Esther was the beloved wife of Allan Helland for 62 years, from their marriage in 1953 until his death in 2015. She was the loving mother of Lynn (Dr. Cheryl Huckins), Kathy (Vaughn) Marderosian, Jan (George) Greulich, Leila (Pat) Leupold, Audrey (Marty) Moro and Gail (Paul) Horalek. She was the proud grandmother of 18 and great grandmother of 25. She was preceded in death by her siblings Leila, Edwin (Sonny), Catherine (Cassy), Lois (Jeannie), and Karl.

Esther grew up in Northville when it was just a village, the daughter of a Lutheran minister. She was a Rosie the Riveter during WWII, then became an RN who devoted decades of her life to caring for patients. She began her nursing career with the Atchison Memorial Hospital on Dunlap Street in Northville and ended it as a charge nurse at Presbyterian Villages of Michigan, in Redford.

Esther was not only an RN, she was also the mother to six children, and somehow – to this day, no one knows how – she worked midnights while still caring for those six children and maintaining a house and keeping her sharp sense of humor, all while getting perhaps three hours of sleep on many days.

One of Esther’s greatest gifts was an apparently unlimited capacity for gathering her friends and her children’s friends and their friends’ friends into her family circle and making all feel special. To the day she passed, she had a genius for instantly recalling details that were relevant to the moment of the many people in that circle. For twenty years, from her late 50s to her late 70s, Esther fed her extended family and all friends who were available – first once a week, then twice a week, providing good food and lots of laughs to 20-30 people at each meal.

Another of Esther’s gifts was a tremendous ability to share the countless warm stories she collected in the process of living her life. These were often loonngg stories summoned from her childhood in Northville and her years as a nurse. Though her stories might have had (lots of) tangents, she did not ramble, and she had the knack of summoning just the right story in the instant it became relevant to the flow of the conversation. Her children are pretty sure she also had perfect recall of every Burma Shave slogan that ever graced a highway. She was a master at composing limericks (some of which would raise a preacher’s eyebrow) that were relevant to the occasion, be it a birthday or just a way to cheer someone up. She often was the butt of her own stories, as she often got a kick out of life’s mishaps. She loved to laugh, and she loved to help those around her laugh as well.

Esther was an inspiring example of a woman with great faith who lived her Christianity with all she met. This faith-filled love was her greatest strength. All who were in her life were blessed to have known her. She loved many, and was loved by many who will now dearly miss her.

Esther’s family will receive friends on Friday, February 25, 2022 from 4-8 pm at the Harry J. Will Funeral Home, 37000 Six Mile Rd. (east of Newburgh and I-275) in Livonia. Her life will be celebrated with a funeral service on Saturday, February 26, 2022 at 10 am at St. Paul Lutheran Church, 201 Elm Street (off of Walnut and East St., west of N Center St.) in Northville.

Esther has requested that in lieu of flowers, donations be made to one of the following organizations that were close to her heart: St. Paul Lutheran Church & School, Man in the Mirror Ministry, Lutheran Special Education Ministries, or Bluestone Voices for Autism.

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