?Helen Elaine Jahnke Holmquist, 93
Helen Elaine Jahnke Holmquist passed away on Feb. 17, 2012, at the Community Hospital in Bonners Ferry, Idaho.
A celebration of her life will be held at her home on July 1 at 11 a.m.. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Kootenai National Wildlife Refuge, 287 Westside Road, Bonners Ferry, ID 83805-5172.
She had quite a life. Born on June 14, 1918, she grew up on a wheat farm in North Dakota—where she began her life-long love of nature, Native American culture and classical music (while listening to the Metropolitan Opera on the radio).
While “chaperoning” her younger sister Lyllah in Los Angeles, she met her husband, Frederick Holmquist. They married after a short courtship and were together just shy of 60 years.
She was mother to Elaine, Ann, Eric and Maren – plus “host” mother to several University of Washington foreign students in the 1960s. Hwan Ja and Oliver still refer to her as “Mum.”
She was an exquisite seamstress; tailoring her own wedding gown, adorable dresses for Elaine, Ann and Maren and even hats in the 1960s.
She explored many different arts and crafts over the years including watercolor, tole and rosemaling techniques in painting, block printing, basket weaving, porcelain and clay pottery.
Upon receiving her mother-in-law’s spinning wheel, she was determined to learn how to spin! Spinning led her to explore natural dying, using fibers other than wool (including flax, alpaca, dog hair and even the cotton from pill containers), knitting, crocheting, weaving and bobbin lace.
The one spinning wheel soon multiplied and she gave her husband a never ending list of post-retirement repair projects. As a member of the Eastside Heritage Guild, she demonstrated her spinning expertise at museums, local parks and county fairs. She was also involved with the Association of King County Historical Organizations in Seattle and the Fiber Artist Women in Bonners Ferry.
Their travels lead them across the US and Canada and overseas to Denmark, Sweden and Norway with an interest in their family’s heritage. She returned to Norway to extend her knowledge of birch bark weaving.
As Bellevue grew up around them in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, so too grew the desire to return to the wide open spaces of their early years. So, in 1996, they packed up their home of 35 years in Newport Hills and moved into a log home in the Paradise Valley near Bonners Ferry, Idaho.
With views of Mt. Clifty and Roman Nose, a lovely pond, wildlife galore and a vegetable garden, she lived her life to the fullest – she was even chopping kindling to stoke her wood stoves, and organizing her family history before she suffered a stroke. She will be remembered for her strength, zest for a healthful life, and her extensive knowledge of traditional fiber arts, which she gladly shared with many. After 93 years, she still believed that there was something new to be learned each and every day.