Helen Irene (Farmer) Tilton, of Strafford, MO, passed away peacefully at the age of 99, on April 7, 2024, under Season’s Hospice care surrounded by family. Helen was born on January 24, 1925, in Peel, Arkansas, to William Vascoe Farmer and Minta (Risley) Farmer, both deceased. Helen graduated from Lead Hill High School in Lead Hill, Arkansas, and worked as a waitress at the Capitol Cafe, in Harrison, Arkansas, where she met her future husband of 62 years, Adron M. Tilton. Following his discharge from the Army after WWII ended, they were married on April 24, 1946, in Harrison. They later moved to Springfield in 1954.

Helen, an excellent seamstress, provided many beautiful clothes for her children and grandchildren over the years. She also loved crocheting doilies, afghans, and baby blankets for family and friends. She retired from the Springfield Public Schools as a cook, supplying many wonderful meals for the children in the schools as well as her family. In 1993, Helen received chemo treatments for a diagnosis of cancer. Five years later, she again received chemo treatments for a diagnosis of stage IV cancer. She miraculously survived! She always said she had two great physicians: her Lord and Savior and Dr. Al Bonebrake.

Preceding her in death were her husband, Adron, in 2008; her son-in-law, Gene Mitchell, in 2010; three brothers, Ray, W.V. (Dub), and Wayne; and three sisters, Avo McBee, Wanda Hall, and Imogene Carter. She is survived by her three daughters, Janice Mitchell of Springfield, MO, Betty Jackson (Larry) of Strafford, MO, and Carolyn Goddard (Scot) of Spring Hill, KS; and one brother, Fred Farmer, of Harrison, AR. She was blessed with 8 grandchildren, 21 great-grandchildren, and 7 great-great grandchildren. She loved her Lord and Savior and was a member of Macedonia Baptist Church in Springfield at the time of her passing.

Helen’s family will host a visitation on Tuesday, April 16, 2024, from 12:00-1:00 p.m., at Greenlawn Funeral Home North in Springfield. Her funeral service will begin immediately following the visitation at 1:00 p.m. Following the service, Helen will be laid to rest in White Chapel Memorial Gardens. There will be a formal procession from the funeral home to the cemetery.

The family wishes to express their sincere thanks to Season’s Hospice for their wonderful, loving care of Helen during this stage of her life. They made it so much easier for all of us.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made in Helen’s memory to Paralyzed and Disabled Veterans of America.

Funeral arrangements have been entrusted to Greenlawn Funeral Home North in Springfield, Missouri.