Longtime educator Jydstrup dies at 86

In 1962 Helen Jydstrup interviewed over the telephone for a teaching position in Las Vegas.

Without ever visiting the valley, she accepted the job and in the fall moved with her husband from South Dakota.

The dynamic Jydstrup, who had just received her master's degree in special education, was a perfect match for the physically handicapped students at Variety School.

She taught all of the basic courses to the small group of students in grades 8 through 12. Outside school she gave the students opportunities that might otherwise have been out of reach.

"She thought a lot of the kids," her son, Douglas Jydstrup, said. "It was kind of like a family, the kids were with her for so long."

Jydstrup, a 23-year teacher at the special education school and active member of the community, died Friday at a local hospital. She was 86.

Born Dec. 2, 1912, in Brainerd Township, S.D., Jydstrup moved to Las Vegas at a time when opportunities and access for the physically handicapped were scarce.

Jydstrup took her students on annual Christmas shopping sprees. She took them to see performers on the Strip and to the state Legislature in Carson City. She advised them on the school newspaper and yearbook. For their birthdays, she would buy cakes and presents.

"She was a really dedicated, caring person," Douglas Jydstrup said.

After her retirement in 1985, her former students would call to see how she was doing.

In 1991 Helen Jydstrup Elementary School was named in her honor.

Jydstrup also played a part in community clubs and activities. She was the president of the Clark Towers retirement housing complex, which she founded in the early 1970s when there were few retirement homes.

She served as president of the Vegas Valley Business and Professional Women's Club and was the governor of the Council of the Exceptional Children.

She was a member of Delta Kappa Gamma, Nevada State Education Association, the Clark County Classroom Teachers Association, the Women's Democratic Club, the Paradise Democratic Club and the Democratic Central Committee.

"She had a dynamic personality," her son said. "She'd just take something and run with it."

Aside from her son, Jydstrup is survived by her daughter, Jill Mahr of Colorado Springs, and two grandchildren.

Visitation will be 2:30 to 3:30 p.m. services Saturday at Palm Mortuary, 7400 W. Cheyenne Ave. A graveside service will be at 4:30 p.m.

Donations may be made to Helen Jydstrup Elementary School, 5150 Duneville St., Las Vegas.

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