Helen Marie Warren

HELEN MARIE REYNOLDS WARREN At age 19, Helen's grandfather, James Montgomery, came to America alone from Ireland. He settled in Poweshiek County, Iowa, where he got a job farming. When he showed up for work it he fields wearing a white linen shirt, his employer was upset until she learned that was the only type of shirt he owned. James liked Iowa so well that he soon brought his younger sister, Rose, to live there. Little by little, as money was available, James brought his entire family to Iowa. He married Mary Jane Crawford, who was also Irish; their daughter, Mary Eva, Helen's mother, was born 04 Aug 1893 in Brooklyn, Iowa. She was the third of ten children. James and Mary Jane were the proud owners of the automobile in Brooklyn, a Spaulding. Austin Leroy Reynolds, Helen's father, born 29 Aug 1892 in Brooklyn, Iowa, was a barber by trade. One summer he and his father traveled to Lakeland, Florida, where he not only worked at his trade, he also returned to Iowa with a small alligator that he reportedly kept in the bathtub. He married Mary Eva Montgomery, who by now was a schoolteacher in Brooklyn, on 03 Aug 1913. Their first child, Helen Marie, was born in 1915. Helen's sister, Ferne Mae, was born in 1920. Soon after Ferne's birth, Austin gave up barbering and started farming. Mary Eva became exhausted cooking for the hired hands, keeping house, and tending to the girls, so Austin sent her to Fort Collins, Colorado, to visit her aunt and uncle for several months. She felt so much better at her aunt and uncle's where she was only responsible for the care of the children. The family moved to Fort Collins in 1923 and Austin went back to barbering. His first shop was on Linden Street; then he moved to the 200 block of West Mountain Avenue. Austin died 18 Apr 1985 and Mary Eva died 19 May 1994, both in Fort Collins. Helen attended Franklin School and graduated from Fort Collins High School in 1932. Some of her most-cherished memories while growing up were her summer vacations when she visited her cousins back in Iowa. After graduation she went to work in the office at the Maytag store in Fort Collins. Helen met Charles Warren 1916-1990 at church. His parents homesteaded northeast of Carr, Colorado. The family later moved to Cheyenne, Wyoming, and then to Fort Collins when Charles was a teenager. Helen and Charles were married 29 Mar 1936, during the depression. Charles was working for Paul Wood Florist, and Helen wanted to attend beauty school. The tuition was $100, money they didn't have, so Helen's father-in-law loaned her the money to attend school. She took every course offered at the school for that $100. In 1944, Helen left her job as a beautician to spend time in California with her sister, a new mother. When she returned home, the permanent wave machine had been replaced by the cold wave and Helen found herself allergic to the solution. That ended her career as a beautician and she went to work with Charles at Paul Wood Florist. When Paul started Columbine Floral Products on East Lincoln Avenue, he took on Charles and Helen as partners, and they later bought out Paul's half of the partnership. At one time, they had about fifty employees, and Helen did the bookkeeping. Helen and Charles had one daughter, Lynette Ann Gierhart b. 1946. Helen was a member of Timberline Church and volunteered in the ICU waiting room at Poudre Valley Hospital. She had been a knitter for many years, and enjoyed cross-stitching. Survivors include her daughter, Lyn Gierhart of Fort Collins; four grandchildren; five great grandchildren and two great-great grandchildren. A Memorial Service will follow at 2:00 p.m. on Friday at Timberline Church, 2908 S. Timberline Rd. A Private Graveside Service will be held at Grandview Cemetery.