Helen Zimmerman, 97

Helen Zimmerman, 97, a longtime resident of Coeur d’Alene, passed away on Aug. 8, 2022. She and her twin sister, Gertie, were born to William A. and Lecta A. (Thompson) Clark on the old Clark homestead in Latah, Wash. on March 2, 1925.

She often joked that their brother Orville was enough older than the girls that he more or less just tolerated them. Even the smallest family members had chores to do on the farm and the twins were no exception. They would hoe and carry water to the garden, feed the chickens, and during harvest were called upon to pump water to top up the field tanks so the workhorses could get their fill. The twins were constant companions, Helen said, and so had to get along, but they occasionally “practiced their choke holds on each other” when they weren’t riding the pigs or their ponies.

School was an eye-opener to a shy farm kid and Helen developed a particular fondness for the young schoolteachers who moved to Latah for their very first work assignment. Helen appreciated her schooling and was overjoyed when music lessons were introduced. She and her classmates formed a harmonica band and later she played alto sax in the school orchestra.

Mrs. Clark quickly concluded that all this culture constituted a growth opportunity for her daughters and before Helen knew it (or could muster a proper defense) she and Gertie, an accomplished pianist, were making appearances at recitals, Eastern Star meetings and social gatherings around Spokane County. Another part of school that caught Helen by the heart was team sports. Basketball was a keen interest, though the girls well understood they were not the star attraction and had to clear the gym whenever the boys needed it for practice. Still, the Latah girls played enthusiastically and successfully.

After high school Helen took a post in Tekoa as a junior clerk with the Office of Price Administration, the civilian rationing board that was charged with distributing scarce supplies such as tires, gasoline, fuel oil, and precious sugar during World War II.

Later she moved to Spokane and became a teller at a downtown bank. In her leisure time she played for a women’s softball team and while she was processing a depositor’s transaction one day, she idly mentioned that the team needed cash for transportation to a regional tournament. In a second she found someone to bankroll the operation. The young man who made that impulsive offer was William F. Zimmerman. Speed seemed to figure into their relationship from the start because after a summer full of Helen’s evening softball games, square dancing (in full western attire to make a better show when they heard the call to roll away with a half sashay) and stepping in as field and kitchen hands during harvest on Helen’s parents’ farm, the two married in September of 1948. They settled in Spokane. Helen continued to work and play ball in her free time which was something of a surprise to her in-laws.

Bill was working at his family’s meat processing/purveying business then, but he knew a good business prospect when he saw one and soon enrolled in the Metropolitan Life Insurance Company’s new agent training program. The couple’s first daughter, Kathie, was born in 1951. A year later the small family moved to Coeur d’Alene where Bill began to develop the company’s new sales territory in North Idaho. Their daughter, Julie, was born in 1953.

Helen was a working mom, though she didn’t get cash money for her labors. She was the household ramrod who baked, canned, pickled and preserved and often had a pan of homemade fudge or egg custard waiting for Bill when he returned home from his regular routine of evening sales calls. Extras from the kitchen sometimes appeared as a scoop of hot cereal for the cat on a cold morning or a fresh cup of coffee for a weary repairman. Homespun Helen turned hard-nosed at the first clang of adversity, though.

After seeing the girls through a bout of scarlet fever and shrugging off the negative connotations associated with the quarantine sign that a county health officer had slapped on the front door, she and Bill agreed that one way to stave off such insults in the future was through a good solid program of physical conditioning. Acting on a local GP’s advice, the whole family eventually took up weightlifting.

Helen’s philosophy was easy to sum up: “You’ve got to have a reason to get up in the morning.” So, when she didn’t have her head in a corner taking care of the everyday, she made her free time count. In the off-hours she squeezed in women’s league bowling, weeknight volleyball, racquetball, and golf lessons. Which ultimately led to golf tournaments. Helen had a true gift for the game. She turned her hand to stunning craft creations, everything from pine petal centerpieces to intricate macramé wall hangings. She loved to laugh at herself as much as she did at others and got a kick out of recounting the details of a dust-up she’d had at the grocery store one day. She’d stormed in, all lathered up over what she considered a substandard product, presented the wrapper as proof of purchase and demanded a refund. The manager gave the wrapper the once-over and said, “I’m sorry, ma’am, you didn’t buy that here.”

Helen was a dedicated helpmate to Bill and a crackerjack mom who taught her girls how to share, throw a ball, stick up for themselves and love music as much as she and her sister did. She emphasized the value of making do and taking care of belongings because, as she declared with great regularity, “They’re perfectly good.” That particular opinion came from her experience as a small witness to hard times on the old Clark place. Though she left home after high school, she always made a point of staying informed about wheat prices, the weather and anything at all that might affect a farmer on the rolling Palouse.

Helen was preceded in death by her husband Bill; her parents; her brother, Orville Clark, and her sister, Gertrude Wolf. She is survived by her daughters, Kathie Butler and Julie (David) Levine; nieces and nephews. At Helen’s request, no memorial service will be held. Her ashes will be interred at Fairmount Memorial Park in Spokane at a later date.

The family would like to express wholehearted thanks to the Auburn Crest Hospice team and the especially kind and attentive staff at the Coeur d’Alene Pacifica Courtyard for seeing to Helen’s comfort and care with respect and tenderness.

Yates Funeral Home has been entrusted with the care of final arrangements. Please visit Helen’s online memorial at www.yatesfuneralhomes.com and sign her guest book.