(Written and submitted by Vikki Golla Joseph)
My Danish sister, Helga Lybye Dahlgaard, died of Parkinson’s Jan. 19, 2023.
She was born Oct. 9, 1943, and at age 16 she chose to become Luverne’s first female AFS student and was a true gift to our whole Golla family! Her Luverne classmates helped her fit right in and she adored them! Her graduation in 1961 was bittersweet for Helga and me, so my parents eased our pain by sending me to spend all summer with her and her family in Denmark after my graduation in 1962! Then I understood how deeply “American” she had become as I loved “being Danish” with her family for those three months.
Helga went on to become a very devoted teacher – of English! She also worked with Denmark’s AFS office the rest of her life to promote the program personally.
Helga loved hiking, biking, badminton, being fit and active, and she married a great guy, Peter Dahlgaard, who shared her activities! They have two daughters, Louise and Rikke, who both married and gave Helga a total of five grandkids to be even more active with!
Helga and Peter were worldwide travelers, including several trips back to us in Minnesota, and I was blessed to visit them in Denmark two more times!
To know Helga was to love her spunk, her humor, her kindness and willingness to try life’s best! She’s gone too soon and is forever the best sister I ever had!
(0216 V)