Helen Byers

Helen Elizabeth Byers, age 93, died peacefully on December 4, 2015 at her home in Grantsburg, WI. Helen, the oldest child of Joseph and Mary (Trisko) Tillman, was born June 9, 1922 in Sauk Centre, MN. Helen graduated from high school in Melrose, MN. She then attended and graduated from Minneapolis Business School. After graduation, she started working at Investors Syndicate. On weekends Helen and her roommate Eileen would go to Eileen’s parents’ farm in Stacy. It was on one of these weekends, at a dance, that she met her future husband, Edward, playing in the band. Helen and Edward Byers were married April 27, 1946 in North Branch, MN. They started their life together in rural Stacy where Ed worked on the farm for his father. In 1950, they bought their own farm, where they raised their family. Helen worked tirelessly on the farm, and also had a garden (if you can call a full acre a “garden”) from which she grew and canned most of her growing families’ food. Threshing and silo-filling time were a big deal in a farming community with all of the neighboring farmers helping each other at this time. Helen’s meals were the best, with all of the farmers staying for one last “lunch” before going to their own farms to do evening chores. Helen also did “daycare” for friends who needed someone to watch their children while they worked. In 1970, they bought a farm in Grantsburg, WI. They lived there until 1981, when they retired from dairy farming. Helen is preceded in death by an infant daughter, Marjorie Marie; her parents Joseph and Mary; brothers Norbert and Donald; sisters MaryAnn and Delores. Helen is survived by Edward, her husband of 69 years. Their children; Floyd (Margaretha); Ken (Janet); Jim (Molly); Barb (Ken) Stoner; Teri (Curt Johnson), Bob ( Lee Anne); Tom (Shelly); Keith (Carrie); Chuck (Debbie); 23 grandchildren and 30 great-grandchildren, and many “honorary grandchildren”. She is also survived by her brother, Joseph and sisters Donna and Bernadine. Visitation will be at Swedberg – Taylor Funeral Home in Grantsburg on Tuesday, December 8, 2015 from 5:00pm – 8:00pm. Funeral service will be held at Immaculate Conception Catholic Church, Grantsburg, WI on Wednesday, December 9, 2015 at 11:00 am. Interment will be at St. Joseph’s Cemetery, North Branch, MN. Pallbearers for Helen will be Brandon Byers, Brian Byers, Lee Byers, Michael Stoner, Jeremy Byers, and Michael Byers. Arrangements were entrusted to Swedberg-Taylor Funeral Home in Webster, WI. Online condolences may be expressed at www.swedberg-taylor.com