Helen Lucille (Overton) Lorentzen

The funeral service of Helen Lorentzen will be held Saturday July 22nd at 2:00 PM at Mahn Family Funeral Home, Rochester Chapel.  Visitation will be for one hour prior to the service, and burial will follow at Grandview Memorial Gardens in Rochester.  Lunch will then follow back at the funeral home following the committal rites.

Mrs. Lorentzen died at her home following a lengthy illness on Saturday July 8, 2023.  She was 87 years of age.  Helen Lucille Overton was born July 28, 1935 to Merle and Ester Overton in Union, Iowa.  She was a graduate of Central-Coffman High School in Rochester with the Class of 1953.  On March 9, 1954 she married David Lorentzen, and the couple enjoyed 57 years together until Mr. Lorentzen’s passing in 2011.

The couple came to Rochester in 1956 from Waynesville, Missouri.  As her husband was an employee of the city of Rochester, Helen successfully challenged city hall’s policy that employees were required to live in Rochester.  She pursued a career in healthcare.  She became a Licensed Practical Nurse and a Psychiatric Technician, and was employed by Samaritan Bethany Nursing Home, the State Hospital, and worked with the mentally disabled with Bear Creek Services.  She was also a private nurse for Dr. Brash and Mr. Arthur Gooding.

Helen enjoyed gardening, bird watching, fishing, being outdoors, and living in the country.  She was an avid reader of books, and she delighted in playing ping-pong, Scrabble, and she often gave attention to teaching her grandchildren life lessons.

She is survived by her five children Dale, Diane, Donald and his wife Kelly, Darla, and Dirk; 14 grandchildren; 19 great-grandchildren; and many nieces and nephews.  Also surviving are two brothers Darrel and Rick Overton; sisters-in-law Pat Overton and Maryann Lorentzen-Jensen; and a brother-in-law Richard Mandery.

In addition to her husband, she was preceded in death by her parents, brothers Roger and Larry Overton, sister Barbara Mandery, and sisters-in-law Nel Overton, and Geri Overton.