Serving Whitman County since 1877
Serving Whitman County since 1877
Arthur Helmke
Karl Wetter
A graveside service for Arthur D. Helmke, 80, Farmington, will be at 10 a.m. Friday, Sept. 15, at the Garfield Cemetery with Rev. Kathy Lee Kramer officiating. A reception will follow at the Farmington Seventh-day Adventist gymnasium.
Mr. Helmke died Sept. 5, 2017, at the Aspen Park Care Center in Moscow. Friends may call and pay their respects Sept. 14 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Kramer Funeral Home in Palouse.
Born Jan. 29, 1937, in Hartline to Frank and Esther Hirschel Helmke, he moved with his mother to Latah after his father died when he was two years old. He grew up in Latah and graduated as the valedictorian of the Latah High School Class of 1955. After high school, Art attended Eastern Washington State College.
He met Judy Babbitt at a social function in Worley, and they were married Oct. 11, 1969, in Plummer, Idaho. They lived in Rockford while Art worked for the Inland Empire Pea Growers in Fairfield. They moved to Farmington when Art was hired as a warehouseman by Oakesdale Grain Growers in 1973. He retired in 2003 after 30 years of service.
Art enjoyed gardening, tending flowers, spending time with his grandchildren and keeping pets. He was a longtime member of the Farmington Fire Department and a fan of the New York Yankees and the University of Idaho Vandals.
Surviving are his wife, Judy, at the family home in Farmington; sons Mathew (Angela) Helmke and Tim Helmke, both of Moscow; sisters Eva Roecks of Worley and Irma Clark of Bonners Ferry, and two grandchildren.
Memorial contributions are suggested to the Moscow Bear Boosters, Box 9724, Moscow, Idaho 83843.
A celebration of the life of Karl Wetter, 87, was Saturday at the Plummer Bible Church. Urn burial followed at Evergreen Cemetery in Plummer. Mr. Wetter died Aug. 25. 2017, at Life Care Center in Post Falls, Idaho, from cancer.
Born Nov. 8, 1929, at Tekoa to Ferdinand and Hedwig Zellweger Wetter, he moved with his family from Tekoa to Plummer in 1931 and graduated from Plummer High School in 1949. He graduated with honors in 1954 from the University of Idaho with degrees in industrial arts, history and physical education.
He and Claudia Jean Stender were married June 11, 1954, at the Fairfield Presbyterian Church, and they made their home at Plummer. In August of 1954, he was drafted into the U.S. Army and served in Germany until June, 1955. Following his military service, he returned to Plummer.
Mr. Wetter taught school for one year in St. Maries, Idaho, and then taught at Plummer High School from 1957 to 1970, and again from 1980 to 1990 when he retired.
He was a member of the Plummer Bible Church, Plummer Community Action Team, and a former Plummer Grange member. His hobbies included gardening, hiking, logging and building things he needed. Karl enjoyed writing and poetry, cooking, sports, oil painting and photography and local and family history.
Survivors include his wife, Claudia; children, Timothy Wetter, Roseville, Calif., Jody (Gary) Williams, Grapevine, Texas, and Roger Wetter, Plummer; a sister, Rosemarie Jones, Spokane Valley, and two grandchildren.
Memorial gifts may be given to Plummer Bible Church, Life Care Center of Post Falls or Hospice of North Idaho at Hayden.
Paid obituaries: See Weekly Pages: Sept. 14, 2017
Sherry Lange: July 11, 1936 - Aug. 29, 2017
Donna Morgan: May 31, 1937 - Sept. 8, 2017
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