Philip Helgesen History at IG
Philip Helgesen was the first superintendent of the Iowa-Grant School District which was created in 1958. Mr. Helgesen was a native of Mt. Horeb where he was raised on a farm. He then worked his way through college at UW-Platteville, attending classes in the morning, working as a painter in the afternoon and in a restaurant in the evening.
In 1948 he began teaching in Argyle and stayed for 6 years. Then he went onto Belmont as their supervising principal. During that time he guided the construction of a new high school and received a Masters at UW in guidance-administration.
Shortly after the dedication of that new building in Belmont, a committee from the Iowa-Grant area approached him not only about building a new high school here but the more monumental task of coordinating the consolidation of 30+ rural grade schools and 4 high schools into one district encompassing 224 square miles.
In December of 1958, he moved with his wife, Joanne, and 4 children, David, Lu Ann, Cynthia, and Steven to Cobb where he set up a temporary office in the Cobb Fire Station. Later he moved into a Quonset building in the parking lot of the Cobb School and continued the journey into what he later described as one of his proudest accomplishments. He remained with the district until 1968 when he moved to Oregon, WI to become the Superintendent of Oregon Schools.
*As a side note, there are eleven pages in the “Iowa-Grant History” book (pg 67-78) detailing the events of how the district and building came about with Mr. Helgesen’s help.
In an interview with the Grant County Independent, he stated “It has been impossible to please all of our 5000 people, but when the time came for historical decisions, such as choosing a site, passing a bond issue, and going through two annual meetings, our people put their shoulders together and came up with a firm answer. With the passing of our high school dedication, much of the fanfare will end, but the people of Iowa-Grant will still demand progress in education and they will continue to work for it. No artist could paint a more beautiful or impressive picture than that of rural folks as they strive for better education.”
Mr. Helgesen passed away January 3, 2013 but before he died, he was able to attend the 50th anniversary celebration here in 2010 and said it was one of the best days of his life.
Philip Helgesen Obituary
OREGON - Phillip Helgesen, age 86, of Oregon, passed away on Thursday, Jan. 3, 2013, at Oregon Manor. He was born on Oct. 14, 1926, in East Blue Mounds Township, the son of Paul and Helga (Kittleson) Helgesen.
Phil graduated from UW-Platteville and received his masters degree from UW-Madison. He married JoAnn M. Johnson on Feb. 14, 1945, in Blue Mounds. Phil was a history teacher, guidance counselor and principal at various schools and was Superintendent for 20 years in the Iowa-Grant School District.
In 1968, he and his family moved to Oregon to take the position of Superintendent of Schools.
After retiring in 1988, Phil kept busy traveling, landscaping and doing yard work. Most of all, Phil enjoyed spending time with his family, especially his grandchildren.
Phillip is survived by his wife of 67 years, JoAnn of Oregon; children, LuAnn (Richard) Anderson of Fond du Lac, Cindy (Dr. Greg) Judd of Long Beach, Calif. and Pastor Steve (Vicki) Helgesen of Franklin, Tenn.; 13 grandchildren; 27-1/3 great-grandchildren; brother, the Rev. Russell (Lorraine) Helgesen of Minneapolis, Minn.; sister, Delores (Donald) Paulson of Ripon; and numerous other relatives and friends.
He was preceded in death by his parents; son, David; great-grandson, Joshua; brothers, the Rev. Kenneth (Ester) Helgesen and the Rev. Gilford (Virginia) Helgesen; and sister, Ila (Phil) Weigand.
Funeral services for Phil will be held at ST. JOHN'S LUTHERAN CHURCH, 625 East Netherwood, Oregon, at 11 a.m. on Monday, Jan. 7, 2013, with the Rev. Paul Markquart presiding. Burial will be at Prairie Mound Cemetery. Visitation will be held at the church from 4 p.m. until 8 p.m. on Sunday, Jan. 6, 2013, and at the church from 10 a.m. until the time of service on Monday.
Memorials may be directed to St. John's Lutheran Church or Agrace HospiceCare, 5395 E. Cheryl Pkwy., Fitchburg, 53711.
On-line condolences may be made at www.gundersonfh.com.