Anita "Kathie" Helser April 24, 1945 - June 22, 2016

Kathie was born in Portland on April 24, 1945 to Joseph Marvin and CeReatha Mae Fought. She attended Wallace Park Elementary School and graduated from Sunset High School in 1964. In 1988 she graduated from Marylhurst University with a Bachelor of Arts in Art.

Kathie worked as an airline stewardess (as they were called back then) for Eastern Airlines in her early 20s. She married her first husband, Charles Hoyt, in 1969. They moved to Camp Sherman in 1975 with their two young children. Soon after, they moved to Sisters and Kathie helped Chuck start the family business, Hoyt's Hardware & Building Supply.

Kathie married Richard Helser, from Portland, in 1988. Sisters was her home and she wasn't about to be relocated to Portland even for love, so Dick and Kathie spent a lot of time going back and forth between their two homes in Portland and Sisters. Kathie and Dick shared their passion for travel, and spent lots of time traveling the world.

Kathie was one of the early members of the Sisters Area Chamber of Commerce where she volunteered many hours. She had lots of different jobs over the years including full-time mother, part-time bookkeeper, and waitress at the Hotel Sisters. She worked as a sales person at Common Threads for several years. She put her creativity to use and started an interior design business called Helser Design. After Dick retired, they bought Cascade Fitness, which they operated together for seven years. Recently, she spent five years volunteering as the coordinator for the SMART reading program at Sisters Elementary School.

Kathie was very active and athletic. She enjoyed skiing, hiking and bicycling Sisters Country. Kathie was a passionate and creative photographer. She mastered the fine art of black and white photography. She spent lots of time in the darkroom she built in her home. She also enjoyed printmaking, watercolor painting and quilting. She had a heart for rock-and-roll and loved to attend concerts. Van Morrison and Eric Clapton were her favorite musicians.

Kathie lived life to the fullest with passion and exhilaration as told by her radiant smile that expressed the love she had for everyone dear to her. She is survived by her husband, Richard Helser, daughter Chelsie Hoyt-Gloeckner, son Tyler Hoyt, stepson Max Helser and step-daughter Berit Pement, six grandchildren, two new great-grandbabies and countless friends.

Next time you are in the Sisters Saloon, make sure to check out the lady in red on the back wall. That's Kathie doing the can-can with her buddies.

A celebration of Kathie's life will be held at the Camp Sherman Community Hall at 3 p.m. on Saturday, July 16.