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 1891 - 1976 (85 years)
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| Name |
Helen Jean Burke |
| Born |
25 Jun 1891 |
Emporia, Kansas  |
| Gender |
Female |
| Died |
22 Sep 1976 |
Los Altos, California |
| Notes |
- Though born in Emporia, Kansas, Helen Jean Burke lived most of her life in Iowa and, later, California. She grew up in Oskaloosa, Iowa. Her father was a travelling salesman of women's ready to wear clothing. When she was a teenager her parents divorced. In her senior year at Oskaloosa High School, she dropped out of school and went to work for a local photographer. She also trained as a milliner, and eventually moved to Nebraska to take up that trade. She married Don Vernon in Beatrice Nebraska, and they set up housekeeping in Wymore, Nebraska. She had known him in Oskaloosa when they were growing up. After a short period of time in Wymore, they moved back to Oskaloosa, Iowa. In Oskaloosa she bore four sons, the first of which died as an infant. When she moved to Fairfield, Iowa with her family in 1931, she continued as a housewife until about 1935 Thereafter she worked for ten years as a local correspondent (reporter) for the Des Moines Register & Tribune, the Ottumwa Courier, and the Fairfield Ledger.
Helen Vernon was very active in the Republican Party, starting in 1930 as a precinct worker in Oskaloosa. In Fairfield she was vice chairman of the Jefferson County Republican Party Central Committee for several years. She helped organize the Iowa Council of Republican Women, holding various offices in it over the years. She served as state president of it in 1945-46. During her years with the Republican Party in Iowa she participated in many election campaigns, including numerous speaking engagements throughout the state on behalf of many candidates. These candidates included several Governors, U. S. Senators, U. S. Representatives, and many other office holders who remained her lifelong friends. Helen Vernon wrote press releases from time to time for the Party, and she was particularly known for writing and producing political skits, which were quite popular in those days. She was active in the National Federation of Women's Republican Clubs, held office at the national level, and was a member of the national board. Helen Vernon was an Eisenhower delagate to the Republican National Convention in 1950 and was given the honor of escorting Dwight Eisenhower to the podium for his nomination acceptance speech. While attending the convention, she appeared on the Nationally televised program, Meet The Press, in support of Dwight Eisenhower.
In early 1946, Helen & Don Vernon moved to Woodward, Iowa, where Don went to work as the business manager of the State Hospital. In 1948 they moved to Des Moines, Iowa, where Don Vernon resumed working for the Iowa State Tax Commission, and Helen went to work as the Executive Secretary of the State Cosmetology Board in the State Health Department. Her responsibilities included the testing & licensing of all beauty operators and beauty schools in the State of Iowa. She had under her supervision the state cosmetology inspectors who inspected all of the beauty shops and beauty schools in the state and were responsible for enforcing the cosmetology laws for professional proficiency, safety, and cleanliness. She continued in this position until she retired in 1956.
After Helen Vernon and her husband retired to Palo Alto, California in 1956, she continued to be active in local Republican Women's Clubs and collecting antiques. She enjoyed having her sons Tom and Craig nearby and was especially delighted to have her grandchildren in the same town.
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| Person ID |
I7 |
Complete |
| Last Modified |
25 Jun 2005 |
| Father |
Richard Joseph Burke, Jr., b. 6 Jul 1858, Picton, Ontario, Canada , d. Abt 1942, Des Moines, Boone County, Iowa, U.S.A. (Age 83 years) |
| Mother |
Laura Winifred Fountain, b. 30 Dec 1864, Eden, Ohio , d. 17 Jan 1952, Des Moines, Boone County, Iowa, U.S.A. (Age 87 years) |
| Married |
3 Jan 1888 |
| Family ID |
F036 |
Group Sheet | Family Chart |
| Family |
Charles Donald Vernon, b. 6 Jan 1889, Crawfordsville, Iowa , d. 29 Oct 1976, Palo Alto, Santa Clara, California (Age 87 years) |
| Married |
14 Mar 1914 |
Beatrice, Kansas |
| Children |
| | 1. Robert Burke Vernon, b. 1915, Oskaloosa, Iowa , d. 1915, Oskaloosa, Iowa (Age 0 years) |
| | 2. William Burke Vernon, b. 25 Sep 1916, Oskaloosa, Iowa , d. 4 Jul 1998, Burien, Washington (Age 81 years) |
| | 3. John Craig Vernon, b. 5 Jan 1923, Oskaloosa, Iowa , d. 21 Mar 2009, San Jose, California (Age 86 years) |
| + | 4. Living |
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| Last Modified |
31 Oct 2008 |
| Family ID |
F004 |
Group Sheet | Family Chart |
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| Event Map |
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 | Born - 25 Jun 1891 - Emporia, Kansas |
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 | Married - 14 Mar 1914 - Beatrice, Kansas |
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 | Died - 22 Sep 1976 - Los Altos, California |
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