Helen Stevens

Helen Stevens, 85, was a university professor who spent summers near Epoufette throughout her lifetime. Ms. Stevens died Saturday, January 26, 2008, at the Ohio State University Medical Center.

She was born January 25, 1923, in Trenton to Linda Kinyon Stevens and Clayton Stevens.

The Stevens family moved to Ann Arbor, where she grew up. The family spent summers in the Upper Peninsula near Epoufette, at a property that has been in the family for more than 100 years, and which remained Ms. Stevens' second home throughout her life. She earned a Bachelors of Art degree in physical education and a master's degree in education from University of Michigan in 1945. While at the University of Michigan, she was a member of the Gamma Phi Beta sorority.

During World War II, she worked for one summer in a tank manufacturing plant in Lima, Ohio.

She taught in Germany, Japan, and at Ohio State University, where she retired with faculty emeritus status in the School of Physical Activity and Educational Services.

Although Ms. Stevens had no surviving relatives, people close to her throughout her life that she considered family included Rachel Richards and Mary Irene Bell, both recently deceased, and the Weatherby family. At her side when she passed was her lifelong friend, Hope Weatherby, and Mrs. Weatherby's son, Craig Weatherby.

In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to the University of Michigan Division of Kinesiology, Laurie Campbell Fund, 401 Washtenaw Avenue, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109-2214.