MATTHEWS, Helen

The Bellingham Herald, Bellingham, Washington Sunday, January 8, 2010 Helen Matthews passed into the arms of God on December 31, 2009. A memorial service will be held at Garden Street United Methodist Church on Sunday, January 10, 2010, at 1:00pm. Helen was born in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, on February 24, 1915, to Clayton and Anne Baer. Her father called her "honey girl" all his life. After college she married Frank Matthews and they set out for the wild west of Jerome, Arizona where Frank took his first job as minister of the Methodist church, and Helen had a full time job as the preacher's wife in a rough mining town. She followed her husband to the Methodist church in Prescott, Arizona, and then to a string of California appointments: Long Beach, San Gabriel, Santa Barbara, Riverside, and Ventura. Everywhere Helen and Frank went they made lifelong friends. Along the way came two daughters, Carol and Judy, and then two sons, Sam and Geoffrey. After retirement, Helen and Frank moved to Westlake Village, California, toured Europe, China, and the Holy Land, and spent a lot of time playing with their grandchildren at the beach. Finally, they moved to Bellingham, Washington, to be with their youngest grandchildren. Frank passed away in 1997, and we all now celebrate Helen and Frank's joyous reunion.