Obituary for Roger D. Helser Roger D. Helser, 86, of Beloit, WI, died Wednesday, July 25, 2018 at Huntington Memory Care, Janesville, WI. Roger was born on January 31, 1932 in Beloit, WI to Claude Helser and Tilly Lund. A child of the depression, he started working when he was 12 years old and held a wide variety of jobs over the course of his life.
After graduating high school in 1951, he was called to duty with the U.S. Navy and served at the Naval Air Base in Corpus Christi, TX. After the Navy, Roger returned to Wisconsin and picked up a job with Freeman Shoes. In September of 1956 he married Evelyn Burnette McIvor and began his education at the University of Wisconsin – Madison.
In 1957, they gave birth to their son, Dale Alan Helser and returned to Beloit. To make ends meet, Roger worked for the Broaster Company and Adams Corn Kurl, while taking classes at Milton College. To ease his schedule, he applied to the Beloit Police Department where he worked nights and went to school during the day.
In 1961 he graduated from Milton College with a degree in Economics. Still working nights as a full time Police Officer, he also began teaching Economics and Math for the Beloit School District. In 1962, their second son, D. Corey Helser was born.
In 1963, he was promoted to Sargeant and began working days at the Police Department. Roger moved to Lieutenant in 1965 and Captain in 1967. In 1969 Chief Kakuske promoted him to Police Inspector.
When Kakuske left in 1972, Roger was named Interim Chief, and later accepted the job of Chief. In 1977, Roger retired from the Police Department to establish his own business. Roger then worked as a Private Investigator and Consultant.
Eventually he developed an assessment procedure for the hiring of public employees and was called into many hiring processes throughout the state of Wisconsin. Tired of the travel, Roger then began working for Carroll Electric in Beloit as their Service Manager – and continued to consult and provide assessment centers in between. In 2000, Roger finally retired from full time work and just provided consulting services for local government.
In “retirement” Roger wrote a history of the Beloit Police Department, compiling photos and historical records into a short publication. Roger also compiled genealogies of the Helser, Lund, McIvor families. He was an avid collector of stamps, coins, and toys.
Despite his mobility issues later in life, Roger found it difficult to be idle. However, his industry was a great benefit to his family and friends – always willing to lend a hand and provide support to anyone that asked. Roger was a loving husband, father, and grandfather.
He is survived by his wife of 62 years, Evelyn McIvor Helser; his son, D. Corey (Tina) Helser of Sun Prairie, WI, and his two grandchildren, Nicholas and Marie Helser. He was preceded in death by his parents, and his son Dale Helser. Graveside services will be at 2:00 p.m. Monday, July 30, 2018 in East Lawn Cemetery, Beloit, WI, with Chaplain Mark Maxted officiating.
Daley Murphy Wisch & Associates Funeral Home and Crematorium, 2355 Cranston Rd. , Beloit, WI assisted the family with arrangements. Upcoming Events Graveside Services , JUL 30.
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