[Dialogue] Helen Newkirk

Thu Feb 7 16:19:40 PST 2013

Jan and I remember Helen and Bill as fewllow founding members of the Westminster United Presbyterian Church in Fort Collins, Colorado.
I even remember being a substitute Sunday School teacher for dear Patricia. Bill and Helen became good friends long before the EI days.
While on a business trip to WAshingtin, DC, I had lunch with Bill, and he made me promise to take RS-I. I agreed. That night he took me 
to a temporary religious house in nearby Virginia, where I saw and hugged Dear Helen again. When my best friend Bill died Helen asked me
to officiate in the scattering of his ashes in the creedk that ran behind their house in Utopia, TX. We've seen Helen twice in more recent
years when she's come to the Northwest on Grandma Duty. We know and love her eternally. Jan talked with her on the phone for an hour
 or so about a month ago, when she sounded pretty good. That Call was a blessing for us.
We continue to be eternally grateful for that RS-1 promise I made to Bill. It led to a number of EI courses in Clumbia, MO, and eventually
two years of internship in 5th City. Previously Jan had participated in Summer '71, and me in Summer '72. We were in 5th City '73-'75
.Jan followed up wiith lots more preschool teaching later, and headed up Leadership Options later on. It has all been quite a jouney and
Bill and Helen Newkirk were right at the center of it all.
Grace and peace,
 Bud Ames

-----Original Message-----
From: Doris Hahn <dshahn31 at gmail.com>
To: Colleague Dialogue <dialogue at lists.wedgeblade.net>
Sent: Thu, Feb 7, 2013 2:36 pm
Subject: Re: [Dialogue] Helen Newkirk

I really knew Helen after she and Bill moved to Utopia, TX, and we were in Smithville, TX. We visited them a couple of times at their B&B--what a treat that was. At that time, Helen zipped around in a VW convertible, and I must say I was envious! Subsequently, Helen and I attended some women's retreats which were conducted by our long-time colleagues. The last time I saw Helen was at one of those retreats, just before she left for Denver to help take care of new triplets that belonged to her niece. She said she hadn't been sure where her next tour of duty was going to be, but after these babies arrived, her mission was clear. Helen, you and your family are amazing people--and will continue to amaze, I have no doubt!
Grace and Peace,
Doris Hahn

On Wed, Feb 6, 2013 at 12:19 PM, Wilson Priscilla <Pris at teamtechpress.com> wrote:

Dear Newkirk family,
I don't have particular stories and remembrances of the Newkirks, but I do remember Helen and Bill as two of the most authentic, lovely people I ever met.
I send love and prayers as Helen continues this stage of her journey...and hugs and peace to the family.
Priscilla Wilson

On Feb 5, 2013, at 7:36 PM, Jack and Louise Ballard wrote:

Dear Newkirk Family and Friends,

We are so sad to learn about Helen's condition.  Oh, my, the amazing memories we carry of Helen and Bill.  Jack and I were a couple of young naive interns who showed up at the Decalceolate Carmelite Monastery at 4th and Rhode Island Ave. DC on January 1, 1971.  How could we have been prepared for the likes of Helen Newkirk?  She and Bill (and Linda who was attending U of Md) were priors and there was a youth component, including Larry Philbrook.  Needless to say, it was a very lively place.  Helen was the most irrepressible person I'd ever met. That is putting it mildly.  Her question was always:  Is it MISSIONAL?  Will it get the MISSION accomplished?  It was always about the mission.  Her very favorite saying was "That's no problem".  No matter how large or small the issue, to Helen it was simply "No problem."  I remember her telling the story that she and Bill never cancelled an event just because of the weather.  You could always figure out a way to have a picnic!  Do you remember the hours we spent in the Collegium Room (the large end of the basement) covering those damp and crumbling walls with burlap?  Bill apparently had a contact through the Forest Sevice to get us burlap that is usually wrapped around the ball of trees.  Days and days were spent stapling the walls with burlap and it worked well enough to keep the moisture out and the walls together.  Many Odysseys and area events as well as daily life went on in that room.  I think no one realized what hit them when they first encountered this truly spirit-filled woman.  She seemed unflappable.  We are always grateful that Bill and Helen were selected to stand for the order at our Chris' baptism after he was born that year in DC. 

Helen has always continued to be the one with the big smile, the sparkle in her eye, the one full of optimism. Please send our hugs, our prayers and our love to Helen as she makes this Great Transition.

Our love and prayers go to the family as well:  Linda, Jim, Patricia, Lisa and David and all the family members.

Louise and Jack Ballard

-----Original Message-----
From: dialogue-bounces at lists.wedgeblade.net [mailto:dialogue-bounces at lists.wedgeblade.net]On Behalf Of Carol Crow
Sent: Sunday, February 03, 2013 10:43 AM
To: Colleague Dialogue; Order Ecumenical Community
Subject: [Dialogue] Helen Newkirk

Dear Friends, 

I have been asked by Patricia to forward this letter from her sister, Linda Knutsen.  Helen lives with Linda and Lester in Virginia, (DC area) and is nearing the end of her life.  They would love to hear stories from any of you who have lived with Helen and Bill - please send them to ljknutsen at gmail.com.  The family will read them to Helen and share with each other.  Patricia leaves this afternoon to share these last days with the family.  By evening Lisa will also have arrived.  Dave and girls are already there and Jim will not be able to come from Serbia but was here last summer.  Other extended family are there and arriving.

Attached is a letter Linda sent out earlier this week.

Subject: Update on Mom/Helen - Feb 1, 2013

Reply-To: ljknutsen at gmail.com

Hello everyone,

I am sorry that I haven't kept you all in the loop more frequently on how Mom is doing...it has been a good, but challenging month.

As anticipated, Hospice has been just simply wonderful, and has made this last few weeks so much more manageable than I could have imagined. While Mom continued for most of January to make her way, usually on her own, out into the living room into her recliner to watch her favorite shows, record her life stories, read, or just hang out, her strength steadily declined. Thankfully, we have gotten her pain well under control, and she claims to have little to none. Starting last Saturday for 4 nights she 'traveled' all night long, talking constantly for most of 7 hours (!) with family members and some strangers in all corners of the globe. These episodes were mostly typical, illogical dreams with memories woven in, and were often quite funny! I have many quotes from those nights that I have shared with my siblings, and we have laughed and laughed!  My favorites are:

"Oh, this is just terrible...my tacos are FREEZING!" ...and...
"LINDA, JUST TELL ME WHAT THE PLAN IS!" (yes, very loudly!)

We have lots of family help here now to be with her. She has slept well for the past two nights with little dream-talking, and her spirits are excellent. Her humor and her intellect are most definitely intact! But she can no longer bear any weight, and sleeps most of the time. She slept nearly 15 hours yesterday after her 4 days of 'traveling' and even then was still quite tired. But today she was quite responsive and interactive, though for very short periods between naps.

She is ready to 'go home' and quite at peace with the most **amazing** life she has had, and she has SO enjoyed hearing from all of you, her ***MOST*** amazing hoard of much-loved, far-flung, wild and wonderful friends and family.

Many of these I mention are gathering here as I type to wish her yet another blessed journey, and she will definitely be thinking of all of you, near and far. (As I write this I realize that neither she nor I have checked her email for maybe a week or more, so I will do that now and share with her all your loving communications.)

Love and peace,
Linda

Thank you for sharing in this special time in the Newkirk family.In caring community,

Carol Crow
Patricia's Housemate in Bothell, WA

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Priscilla H Wilson
Pris at TeamTechPress.com
913-432-2107
www.teamtechpress.com

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