Helen B Brannon

Helen B (Ogden) Brannon, 102, passed away peacefully on Sunday, April 20, 2025. She was born in Helena, MT to Neri Ogden and Florence (Walsh) Ogden on December 10, 1922. She was raised on a farm in Simms, MT where she enjoyed tending to the chickens and calves as a young girl. Helen graduated from high school in 1940 from Simms High School. She continued her education at Montana State in Bozeman and studied Business and Social Studies. She attended college through the war years. In the summers she returned home to work on the farm. She graduated with mostly women in 1944.

After graduation Helen began her teaching career in Cascade. She taught in Fairfield and Lewiston, before moving to Chester in 1953. She met her husband Joe Brannon, while they were both teaching at Chester School. They married on August 6, 1955. They enjoyed playing cards, especially pinochle every Sunday night with friends. In 1957 they welcomed their first son Bruce and then welcomed their second son Bill in 1960. Helen took 10 years off from teaching to raise her family and returned to teaching when Bill was in 1st grade. The Brannon family, especially Helen, loved Glacier National Park, and visited every year when the boys were growing up. They also frequented Lake Blaine every summer.

Helen taught for 30 years, 22 of those years in Chester. Her favorite courses to teach were accounting, business, and typing because of the doors they opened for her students. She loved to hear of her students' success and wanted to ensure they worked hard to earn the skills to succeed “Typing is in your head, not your fingers”.

Some of her happiest moments were marrying Joe, traveling, and being at home. The simplest pleasures in life brought great joy to Helen. Joe passed away in 1983 after 28 years together. Helen continued to teach, and enjoyed tending to her garden, canning fruits and vegetables, and taking care of the yard.

After retiring in 1989 Helen spent time traveling with dear friends and her family. Some of her favorite trips were Alaska, Hawaii, England, Ireland, and Scotland. She fondly remembered her trips to the World's Faire in Spokane in 1974 and the 1988 Calgary Winter Olympics. Helen often visited Bruce in Idaho and her grandchildren in California.

Helen experienced a lot of changes in 100 years, but one thing that remained consistent was her love of homemade ice cream and fried chicken. Her mother’s fried chicken was where the love began and her daughter-in-law’s in recent years. Helen would tell stories of how she worked hard for that ice cream too; she would walk to the drifts of snow in the coulees to get the ice to make the ice cream.

In her later years, Helen’s vision began to fail. She remained active and lived in her home in Chester. She loved listening to her books on tape and all sporting events. In 2019 Helen moved to California near Bill and his family. In 2022, on Helen’s 100th birthday, her great-grandchild Olivia Helena Navarro was born. Olivia brought lots of smiles and joy to Helen.

Helen brought a century of joy and resilience to this world. From growing up on a farm with an outhouse, to buying her own home just 30 years later. She believed in the importance of education and knew the value of hard work from a young age. She carried that through her life and built a legacy of prioritizing and providing for her family. She instilled her life experience in her students and her family and always wanted to see them grow and loved nothing more than to celebrate their success.

Helen is survived by her son, Bill (Cathy) Brannon; grandchildren, Kelli (Dominic) Navarro, Jared Brannon, Jacob Brannon; great grandchild Olivia Navarro; and numerous nieces, nephews and cousins.

She was preceded in death by her husband Joe; parents Neri and Florence; son Bruce; brother Morton Ogden; sister Lois Coons; and numerous aunts, uncles and cousins.

A special thank you to The Residences of Antioch for their loving care and support.

A graveside service will be held May 17th at 10:00 am at the Chester Cemetery.

In lieu of flowers, the family is requesting donations be made to the Highline Health Foundation or the charity of their choice.