Funeral services for Helen M. Sydnes, 84, of Albert Lea, will be held at 11 a.m., Thursday at First Lutheran Church in Albert Lea. The Rev. Daniel Baker will officiate. Interment will be in Graceland Cemetery. Visitation will be from 5 to 7 p.m., Wednesday at the Bayview/Freeborn Funeral Home and one hour prior to the service at the church on Thursday. To sign the guest book, go to www.bayviewfuneral.com.

Helen passed away on Saturday, Nov. 6, 2010, at the Albert Lea Medical Center, surrounded by her family.

Helen Marie Sydnes was born on Feb. 5, 1926, in Albert Lea, the daughter of Hans Christian and Hencina Metta Marie (Nelsen) Andersen. As a child Helen moved with her family to Forest City, Iowa, and to Hollandale before returning to Albert Lea. She graduated from Albert Lea High School in 1944. On March 13, 1948, Helen was married to Earl Sydnes in Albert Lea. She worked at Wilson’s for many years, retiring in 1978. Helen was a member of First Lutheran Church and the American Legion Auxiliary.

Survivors include her children: Vickie (Jerry) Paulson and Richard (Sheryl) Sydnes; grandchildren: Kristie Lau, Doug (Kristal) Paulson, Tara (Corey) Camp, Tanya (Jerry) Westrum, and Trisha (Zach) Hansen; great-grandchildren: Karissa and Dennis Lau, Brooke Paulson, Cayden and Kyah Camp, Talin Tuchtenhagen, and Aryah Hansen; brothers-in-law: Delbert Wegner and John Sydnes; sister-in-law, Mary Sydnes; and many nieces and nephews.

Helen was preceded in death by her husband, Earl; her parents, Hans Christian and Hencina Metta Marie Andersen; her grandson, Justin Paulson; brothers: Foster Andersen and Richard Andersen; sisters: Eleanor Wegner, Jeanette Fleming, and Sylvia Andersen; father-in-law and mother–in-law, Tom and Emma Sydnes, brothers-in-law: Irving Sydnes, Leroy Sydnes, Ted Sydnes, and Wendell Fleming; sisters-in-law: Fern Andersen, Dorothy Sydnes, and Blanche Sydnes.