Helen Staples was the daughter of John Wesley and Edith (Sandburg) Staples; she was born on Sept. 24, 1914 in Pratt County, Kansas and died on April 17, 2005 at the Meade County Hospital, Kansas at the age of 90 years, 6 months, and 23 days. She graduated from Plains High School in 1932.
She married (1st) Delbert Chase on March 18, 1933 at the West Glendale Parsonage in Plains, Kansas but was soon annulled. She married (2nd) Roy Charles Willmett on Feb. 14, 1940 by Probate Judge Edgar Foster in Garden City, Kansas. After their marriage they lived and worked on the XI Ranch south of Plains, Kansas. Roy was a ranch-hand and Helen worked in the home of the ranch owner. In 1944 they moved back to Roy's home place in Maple Hill, Kansas where Roy farmed and raised cattle. In 1949 Roy checked into a sanitarium in Wichita, came home for awhile but then went back to the state hospital while Helen worked in Wichita. They later divorced in 1966 and had no children together. Helen then made her home in Plains, Kansas and took care of her aging father until his death. She was a custodian for the Plains school system for many years. In her retirement she enjoyed traveling to other countries and sightseeing. She was especially close to her nephews and their children and would love playing cards and "spoons" whenever she could. Her wishes were to be cremated and placed at the foot of her mother's grave in Plains, Kansas. Rest in peace Aunt Helen, signed A.H.S.
