Tag Archives: Sig and Helen Decker

New memorial scholarship honors Wrangell commercial fishing siblings Sig and Helen Decker

21-year-old Sig Decker and 19-year-old Helen Decker grew up commercial fishing with their parents on the family boat. “That was a really fun time as a family. It’s sort of the most genuine family time you can get is all being in a little tiny boat in the middle of nowhere and working together,” says Julie Decker, Sig and Helen’s mom. “At a certain point, I think they wanted more. So then they started crewing on seine boats and were on a couple different boats, and then eventually were in the same boat, the summer of 2020.” On July 27, 2020, Sig and Helen and two other crewmates, 29-year-old Ian Martin of Petersburg and 37-year-old Dennis Lord of Elmira Heights, New York, were killed in a car crash on Mitkof Island south of Petersburg while on a break from commercial fishing. >click to read< 15:14

A Fundraiser: Memorial Expenses for Sig and Helen Decker

On July 28, Julie and Gig Decker learned that they lost both their children, Helen and Sig Decker in a car accident in Petersburg, Alaska. Helen was 19 and Sig was 21. Although both were born and raised in Wrangell, Helen and Sig were in Petersburg fishing side-by-side for the summer to help pay for college. This unimaginable loss comes during an already challenging time. The initial $10,000 in funds raised will go towards funeral costs and related expenses. We are looking to raise $50,000 to fund the rest of the brand new Wrangell Mariner’s Memorial where Helen and Sig will be the first names on the wall. Additional funds raised after that will be used to start a Memorial Scholarship Fund,,, >click to read, and, please donate if you can<21:17