Helen J. Klauss

Helen J. (Richards) Klauss, age 96, of Fargo, North Dakota, formerly of Wheatland, North Dakota, entered Heaven’s gates on July 27, 2018. She was born on June 8, 1922 to the late Dexter and Verna Richards.

Helen grew up on a farm near Amenia, North Dakota with her brother, Clark, and attended St. Luke’s School of Nursing in Fargo. She worked at the VA hospital in Fargo until her marriage to Oliver Klauss on March 10, 1945. She then became a farm wife and full-time mother to her 3 children, Pat (Klauss) Meier, Rick Klauss, and Robyn (Klauss) Samuelson.

Despite her full schedule, she also worked as the first female school bus driver in North Dakota, school cook, 4-H leader, and migrant school nurse. Helen was a devout Christian and member and prayer group leader of the Faith United Methodist Church in Fargo. She was a Sunday School and bible school teacher, choir member, and served as the youth leader for the Methodist church for over 25 years in her home parish in Casselton.

When her children entered college, Helen returned to work as an RN, working in obstetrics at St. John’s Hospital in Fargo, until she retired in 1993. She and Oliver enjoyed traveling with lifelong friends, Bob and Betty Hill.

She loved baking buns and sweet rolls for her family and friends and she taught her granddaughter and grandson to make them so the tradition could continue. She was well known for her “Helen Hugs” which were given freely to friends, family and sometimes people she had just met! Her loving spirit will be remembered forever by all who knew her.

Thank you to the staff at Bethany on 42nd, Cottonwood Court, for their compassionate care for her in the last months of her life and for becoming like family to us. And a special gratitude to Hospice of the Red River Valley for helping to make her comfortable the past two weeks and for their caring support of our family.

She is preceded in death by her parents, her brother, Clark, her husband, Oliver and her beloved son, Rick.

She is survived by: her daughters, Pat (and special “son”, Ray) Meier and Robyn Samuelson. Grandchildren, Kari Meier (Dana) Brock, Chris (Karin) Meier, Tim (Kara) Meier, Morgan Samuelson (Matt) Linton, Mitchell Samuelson, and Karen Araya, along with 10 great- grandchildren, Alex, Matthew, Libby and Ryan Brock, Grace, Boden and Landon Meier, Easton, Griffin and Maggie Meier, and Sofia and Beckett Araya.