Helen Sommers: An Oral History

Helen Sommers has seen the World!
Helen travels to Denmark – 2003
Helen Sommers traveled to Copenhagen, Denmark
in 2003. Copenhagen is the largest metropolis
in Scandinavia and is considered a center for culture
and art. The Greater Copenhagen area has a
population of nearly 2 million people. It is the seat
of the National Parliament (Folketinget), and the
Royal Residence and Supreme High Court.
Tivoli Gardens, the old entertainment park with its many flowers,
lights and oriental buildings, which opened in August 1843 to provide
recreational facilities for the citizens of a then very crowded
Copenhagen, Denmark.
pg. 197
Jordan one stop on Helen’s Middle
East tour – 2004
School kids visiting Jerash, Jordan. Photo by Helen Sommers
In 2004, Helen Sommers had completed 32
years in the House. After an intense primary, which
Helen won with 52 percent of the vote even though
she was outspent two-to-one, she decided to take a
trip to the Middle East. In October, she spent two
weeks visiting Jordan, Syria and Lebanon. Helen
was particularly fascinated by Jerash and Petra in
Jordan and the amazing living quarters carved in
the rock-way, high in the cliffs above Israel 2,000
years ago.
This is in Petra, Jordan in the Middle East high
Petra is now a UNESCO world heritage site and one of “The New 7 Wonders of the World.” Helen’s great interest in archeology made Petra one of the
many highlights of her Middle East visit.