Helen Mae (Madson) Largent, resident of Los Altos, is now reunited forever with her high school sweetheart, Francis Dean Largent (also known as Fran and Frank D. Largent). After meeting in the marching band, in which Fran played the trumpet and Helen the saxophone, they were married in 1945 at age 19 and enjoyed 62 years together.

Helen Mae Madson was born on Nov. 29, 1925, in Great Falls, Montana, to Notto Clarence Madson and Emma Janetta (Hovden) Madson. Her heritage was Norwegian, with parents and three grandparents born in Minnesota and her maternal grandfather, a fisherman, coming from Norway when he was 21 years old. Helen’s family moved to Lynwood, California in a Model T Ford when she was 20 months old. Though her young father was a cowboy, after Notto married Emma he did not want to work in the field or care for livestock, so he worked at the Anaconda Copper Mine in Montana and then at Shell Oil in California. Helen’s mother Emma was an excellent cook and seamstress, sewing clothes for Helen and her children. Helen is survived by her children, Lynda Lee (Paul) Diaz, Laurel Ann Largent, Marc Dana (Bonnie) Largent, and Marcia Sue Largent (Steven) Corcoran; five grandchildren, David Andrew (Angie) Diaz, Shaun Paul Diaz, Ashley Rose Diaz, Logan John Largent, and Cooper Luke Largent; and two great-grandchildren, Andrew Theodore Diaz and Mila Marguerite Diaz.

Helen graduated from Compton Junior College in 1945 and received a Bachelor’s Degree and California Teaching Credential from Pepperdine College in 1947. She taught elementary school in Lynwood, Arcadia, and El Monte, California, from 1948-1957, while she and Fran built a house on a hill in an avocado grove in Monrovia in 1950. After her four children were born she substituted so she could be home with her own children after school. She helped to support Fran while he completed his doctoral degree in Education at Stanford University from 1956-1959, then lived in Carmichael for ten years, becoming active in the Good Shepherd Lutheran Church. She and Fran enjoyed their Chris-Craft boat, taking family and friends water-skiing on Folsom Lake, and Helen, a gracious hostess, would pack a fabulous lunch. The family enjoyed bicycle riding together, taking turns being the captain of the tandem bicycle. Tradition included Helen’s giving her children one-on-one time with her mother and Sunday family dinners. Helen coordinated neighborhood carnivals, canned fruit from the yard and made boysenberry pies. Through caring for family pets, Helen taught her children responsibility. She played the piano, organ, and ukulele, while teaching her children to love music. The family took camping trips to Yosemite and other state and national parks in their green house trailer, and Helen was expert at keeping everything organized in tiny spaces. Helen loved nature—the redwoods, wildflowers, plants, animals—as she said they gave her a sense of harmony with the universe.

After moving to La Jolla (1969-1977), Helen started a book shop, managed the family’s rental properties, and attended classes at University of California, San Diego. The family enjoyed weekend trips to Anza-Borrego Desert, eventually buying a second home there and later one in Palm Springs where the family enjoyed reading, swimming, and walking. After moving to Newport Beach (1978-2006), Helen worked part-time for five years as an Administrative Assistant in an office for graduate students at Pepperdine University, saying, “It was a joy being with adult students.”

After retirement, in 1986, Helen and Fran traveled extensively, and Helen kept detailed travel journals of the places they visited and people they met. They purchased annual airline passes, and they took trips to every state and every continent, with Helen even going on a safari to Africa on her own. After Fran passed in 2006, she continued to travel with each of her daughters. She wrote in one of her journals about a visit to a relative in Norway: “I remarked that I was happy and loved my life…she replied, ‘me too’ which brought about some of the similarities we shared and enhanced my understanding about the culture of Norway.”

Helen has lived in Los Altos since 2012 where she moved to be near her daughters Laurel and Marcia. Helen will be missed by all of us and remembered for her courageous and positive nature. Helen practiced Christian morals in word and deed, and she lived her life full of gratitude. She wanted her children and grandchildren to “remember their humble beginnings and make efforts to explore and experience life in all its wonders. Vital is the willingness to change perspectives on the world, encounter new people, see new sights, and continue to learn wherever life takes you.”

Helen’s final resting place is next to Fran at Pacific View Memorial Park in Corona Del Mar, California. There will be no services.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made in her name to the Parkinson’s Foundation, at Parkinson.org. The community is invited to share a note with the family by posting it on Legacy.com.