Helen Loraine Fellows

Surrounded by her family on Palm Sunday April 13, 2025, Heaven gained the most beautiful soul in Helen Loraine Fellows. She was 96, formerly of Windsor, and a longtime resident of Loveland. Helen was born Helen Loraine Frerichs on January 30, 1929  in her childhood home on the family farm in Fairfax, Missouri to Lillie Myrtle (Weltmer) Frerichs and Adolph Theodore Frerichs. She was the youngest of three siblings: Beulah Juanita, Frances Virginia, and Adolph Tommy. Helen never knew her father, Adolph, as he passed when she was 13 months old. Nor did she know her sister Frances, who passed at the age of 9. That left her mother to run the family farm with the help of Beulah and Tommy. Helen’s older sister and brother were her universe. She grew up attending country school until her mother decided she needed a better education in town. Although Lillie had little time for her golden-haired child, she did her best to provide Helen with opportunities to enhance her gifts. Lillie took her to Tarkio College during her youth to study piano under Arthur Lindstrom, a future Julliard professor. Under his direction, Helen became a very talented pianist. A gift that our entire family would enjoy through the years. 

At the beginning of WWII her brother Tommy, by then a US Army Air Corps pilot, was killed. This affected Helen’s heart immensely. It began to heal when John Edward “Jack” Fellows stepped into Helen’s world her senior year of high school. Fresh home from the Navy after serving in WWII and D-Day, he was eager to find love and settle down. On Easter Sunday, 1946, Jack and Helen went on their first date. He was smitten with “Blondie,” as he fondly called Helen. She graduated from Fairfax High School, gave up her dream of pursuing music in college, and the rest is history. They were married Feb 16, 1947 and began marital life as hardworking cattle and hog farmers, while still helping Jack’s father farm his crops. In 1948, Tommy Bryce and Terry Lee were born. The local doctor was just as surprised as the couple was that Helen gave birth to twins. Six weeks later, they suffered a heartbreaking loss when little Terry passed away from SIDS. This loss was one that shaped Helen’s protectiveness of her children and grandchildren for the rest of her life. Daughters Kerry Ann arrived on the scene in 1952 and Alicia Lynn in 1955. The young family ventured to Colorado in 1957 and made Loveland their home. 

Helen dedicated her whole being to her family. While Jack worked at the Loveland Post Office, did other moonlighting jobs, and joined the USCG Reserves, she kept life organized for the kids. In the sixties she spread her wings and began a career as Curator of Collections at The Loveland Museum. This was a job Helen loved, as she embraced many community connections and made lifelong friends with colleagues. She retired from the museum after 20 years of service to care for her grandsons Justin and Levi during the school year and granddaughter Hillary during the summers. Helen was an amazing cook (especially cherry pies), an immaculate housekeeper, a meticulous organizer, and a loving and supportive mother/grandmother. Although she could create wonderful meals out of nothing, she hated cooking but did it without complaint. That attitude was imparted to her girls, but sadly not the skills. She kept all of us kids clean and her house spotless. Already having a leg-up on Covid protocols long before they arrived, Helen said, “There’s no excuse not to be clean.” Helen was the best at so many things: Nursing her children back to health, volunteering at church and schools, having the most beautiful cursive handwriting, being well-read with countless books, keeping up on world news and the weather, storytelling of family facts and legends, listening and being genuinely interested in others’ lives, giving thoughtful advice when warranted, and welcoming everyone into her home as her own. She was an amazing seamstress, a skill and love she shared with her daughters. The arts of crocheting and quilting were a mere forte. The entire family benefited from her love of music and her talent as a pianist: Tommy creating his own “Beatles” band with his electric guitar, Kerry buying every 45 and LP album in sight, and Alicia playing her violin while being accompanied by her remarkable mom.

There was a slight “edge” to Helen at times. As she would admit, her German stubbornness would shine through. She would become a “Mama Bear” if her cubs needed protecting. Being a strong Democrat with strong opinions, she would get fired up about politics clear up until the end. Without the overshadowing of Dad’s exuberance, she spoke her mind without hesitation. 

Helen always put everyone else’s needs above her own. She traveled with Jack to as many places as time would allow, from the East Coast to the West, to Hawaii, and to the beaches of Normandy, France. She also held steadfast to the treadmill of chasing her children and grandchildren’s activities. Those times she said she would never forget and never regret. Her grandchildren and great-grandchildren were near and dear to her heart. When she was 75, her health began a downward spiral beginning with open-heart surgery. But even more debilitating to her was the condition of macular degeneration. Losing her eyesight created a loss of independence and a loss of joy, but no bitterness. Jack and Helen were faithful members of the First United Methodist Church in Loveland for over 60 years. Through this devotion, and their devotion to each other, they were infinitely tied at the hip. When Jack passed on Memorial Day of 2009, it took the spark right out of Helen. She missed him terribly but tried her best to be strong. She lived on her own for a while and then moved to Windsor in 2015 to live with Alicia and her husband John. Recently, when Helen’s health declined considerably, The Lodge at Greeley gave her a new home. For the last 6 months, hospice care was needed before she slipped away from us. We are forever grateful to the wonderful caregivers of Visiting Angels, the amazing Care Team at The Lodge, and the compassionate Optimal Hospice Team who helped support, love, and care for Helen through these last several months on her journey to peace and comfort. In 96 years, there’s a lot of life between the bookends, and Helen lived it well. This little lady loved her neighbors, her friends, our friends, and most of all, her family. Our hearts are full to have been loved and cared for by the most beautiful genuine grateful gracious giving loving person on the planet. Helen, Blondie, Mom, Grandma, Gram, BaHelen, we miss you deeply and will love you forever. 

Helen is survived by her daughters Kerry Anderson (Mark) of Greybull, WY and Alicia Mitchell (John) of Windsor; daughter-in-law Virginia Fellows of Berthoud; former daughter-in-law Kayoko Sawamura of Columbia, MD; sister-in-law Marcia Brewer of Rolla, MO; grandchildren Cynthia Sawamura (Richard Alexander) of Columbia, MD, Lynn Sawamura of Godfrey, IL, Kim Bailey (Mike) of Johnstown, Hillary Jones (Sam Yeates) of Basin, WY, Justin Mitchell (Lacey) and Levi Mitchell (Whitney) of Windsor; adopted grandchildren Terry Fellows (Pam) of Rocklin, CA, Marty Fellows (Diane) of Lone Tree, IA, Rosalie Lawrence and Connie Cook (Kevin) of Berthoud; eight great-grandchildren Tiffany (Josh), Akira, Austin, Haylee, Marley, Blakely, Jasper, and William; one great-great grandchild Kobe; and several nieces, nephews, cousins, and special friends.

She was preceded in death by her parents, husband Jack Fellows, sisters Beulah Weedin and Frances Frerichs, brother Tommy Frerichs, sons Terry Lee Fellows and Tommy Bryce Fellows, son-in-law Dean Jones, and adopted grandson Richard Fellows. 

A Celebration of Life will be held at The First United Methodist Church of Loveland at 1:00 pm, Thursday, May 15th, with burial in Fairfax, MO on Wednesday July 9th. In lieu of flowers, memorials can be made in Helen’s name to Beverly Farm Foundation in IL (beverlyfarm.org) or Craig Hospital in CO (craighospital.org).