Betty Fain was known for her country store, now a downtown Helen institution, but she was remembered for being a caregiver.

Fain died Sunday at the age of 83. The co-founder and face of Betty's Country Store, Fain started the mom-and-pop shop along with her late husband George as "something to do," her daughter Kelly Goins said Monday.

"One thing led to another with the store growing as it did," Goins said.

Fain's caring spirit and generosity likely played a role in that growth.

"Everybody enjoyed my mom," said daughter Dru Shelton. "... A lot of people come in still and just remember ... a lot of things, like she used to give them candy, didn't make people pay for it." The store also would deliver groceries, and Fain made carrot cakes to sell.

Shelton still works at the store and her sister Darlene Broadway is the owner.

David Jones, owner of Hansel & Gretel Candy Kitchen in Helen, remembered Betty Fain well.

"George may have run the business as far as being the frontman, but Betty was the brains that held it all together," he said. Jones opened his store the same year as the Fains.

"She was really an institution of Helen," he added.

Jolly Nichols, owner of Jolly's Toys across the street from Betty's, said she visits the store about every other day.

"She was just a real joy to be around," Nichols said of Fain. "She always had a kind word for everyone."

Though the Fains retired in the late 1990s, they still visited the store frequently for many years. Goins said her mother would make sure the girls behind the counter weren't chewing gum and were appropriately dressed.

"She'd come in and just kind of oversee things," Shelton said. "She just wanted to be there."

The store is still much the same as when the Fains ran it.

"Everything is still there pretty much the way my dad left it," Shelton said. "That's the way they wanted it, so that's the way it's been."

Of course, now, those who visited the store as children are bringing in their own children to share the experience, Goins added.

For Betty's children, the memories are of a mother devoted to making sure everyone was OK.

"The one word that describes my mom the most is a caregiver," Goins said. "Just really wanted to make sure everybody was OK and taken care of."

Fain leaves behind six children and many grandchildren, great-grandchildren and great-great-grandchildren.

Visitation for Fain is 5-8 p.m. Tuesday at Alexander Funeral Home of Cleveland. Funeral services are scheduled for 11 a.m. Wednesday at Helen Presbyterian Church.