Helen Louise Louden

Helen Louise (Hanover) Louden passed away on August 27, 2022, at her home in La Quinta, CA, due to complications from heart disease. She was 81.

Helen was born on December 5, 1940, in Minneapolis, MN, to Dr. Ralph D. and Effie Louise (Maland) Hanover. Helen spent her first years in Littlefork, MN, where her parents, a physician and a nurse, had built a small hospital in 1935. In 1951, the Hanover family moved to International Falls, MN, where Helen graduated from high school in 1958. She earned a bachelor's degree in music from the University of Minnesota, where she met her future husband, Lynn M. Louden, a graduate student. They married in 1962 and moved to Sacramento in 1967 for Lynn's career as a professor of art history. In 1969, the Loudens moved to Oakland, where Helen and Lynn lived until 2004, when they relocated to La Quinta.

Helen was a gifted cellist who played in numerous orchestras and chamber ensembles until her final days. During her years in the Bay Area, in addition to performing and giving private cello lessons, Helen earned a master's degree in library science from the University of California, Berkeley. After moving to La Quinta, Helen and Lynn enjoyed volunteering at The Living Desert.

Helen is survived by her two children, Mark (Jeanne Schueller) and Catherine (Michael Miller), and three grandchildren, Alexander Miller, Clara Louden, and Elizabeth Miller. She is also survived by her sister-in-law, Colleen Hanover, brother- and sister-in-law, Jay and Rosemary Louden, as well as several nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by Lynn in 2019, her father in 1971, her mother in 2010, and her brother, Russell Hanover, in 2003.

The family would like to express their heartfelt gratitude to the staff at the Eisenhower Medical Center, and to Helen's friend, Gina Lamph, for their care for Helen in her final days.