Lierz, Helen 1931-2023 Savannah, Mo.
By NewsPress Now
SAVANNAH, Mo. – Helen E. Lierz, 92, formerly of Seneca, Kansas, passed away peacefully at LaVerna Village Nursing Care, in Savannah, Missouri, on Dec. 30, 2023.
Helen was born in Kelly, Kansas, on April 21, 1931, to Henry and Magdalen (Steinlage) Rottinghaus. After the death of her mother in 1944, Helen completed 8th grade and then helped on the family farm.
She was joined in marriage to Lester Lierz on Dec. 1, 1956, and enjoyed being a farmer’s wife and mother to their two boys, Mark and Steve. After the death of Lester in 1963, Helen dedicated her life to raising her sons. She moved to Seneca where she worked for the Co-Op, before eventually opening The Fabric Inn on Main Street where she was a successful business owner for 21 years. Education was important to Helen, and she eventually completed her high school education in 1975. After selling the store in 1991 Helen devoted the next 15 years to being the Housemother at Kappa Sigma Fraternity in Lawrence, Kansas, where her boys had both been members during their college years at KU.
During her summers off and between college terms, Helen enjoyed spending time in Seneca, visiting and playing Bridge with friends, sewing and quilting, traveling to St. Joseph or Kansas City to spend time with her sons and families, and traveling with her lifelong friend, Sally Lauer. Helen was a strong, determined woman, a gifted quilter and seamstress, even making her daughters-in-law wedding dresses.
Her pride and joy were her boys, their wives, and her grandkids and she leaves behind a legacy of love, faith, and family.
She is preceded in death by her parents, Magdalen and Henry; brothers, Bernard, Clarence, Marcellus, and Edwin; and sisters, Rita and Rose.
She is survived by her two sons, Mark (Susan) Lierz, of St. Joseph, Steve (Shelley) Lierz, of Overland Park, Kansas; sisters, Mary Sieben and Dorothy Hammes; brother, Ray Rottinghaus; grandchildren, Matt (Sydney) Lierz, of Columbus, Ohio, Mike Lierz, Anne Lierz, Kate Lierz, John Lierz, and Hank Lierz, of Kansas City, Brady Lierz of Little Rock, Arkansas, Sydney Lierz, of Overland Park; great-grandchild, Lucy Lierz, of Columbus; and many nieces and nephews.
A rosary was held just prior to the funeral Mass on Saturday, Jan. 6, 2024, at Sts. Peter and Paul Church in Seneca. The Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated by Fr. Jim Shaughnessy. Helen’s sons placed the pall on her casket. The giftbearers were Kate Lierz, Sydney Lierz and Anne Lierz. The lectors were Brian Sieben and Jarod Rottinghaus, and the eucharistic ministers were Dorothy Hammes and Ray Rottinghaus.
The Pallbearers were her eight grandchildren, Matt Lierz, Mike Lierz, Anne Lierz, Kate Lierz, John Lierz, Hank Lierz, Brady Lierz and Sydney Lierz. The burial was in the church cemetery.
Memorials can be made to Sts Peter and Paul Parish, Seneca.
To express your sympathy and for more information visit www.lauerfuneralhome.com. As published in the St. Joseph News-Press.
