February 18th is the 93rd anniversary of the birth of Helen Louise Catherine Wiley Whalen: wife of John; daughter of Boom and Boompa; sister of Mary Claire; mother of Christian, Teresa, Damian, Lisa and Mercy; aunt to nine of us; grandmother of eight; and friend to so many.
Helen and Mary Claire grew up Back of the Yards on the Southside of Chicago in the house their grandfather built at 704 W. Halsted. I picture these girls living a childhood not too different from the characters in "Our Gang." Helen and Mary Claire took up Irish Dancing and would dance on the radio as kids!
She valued education greatly and, as an adult, embarked on a journey on which she attended Edgewood College in Madison, WI, and earned an Associates of Arts degree. She then received a Bachelor’s of Arts degree from Loyola University in 1949 and continued on to graduate school at Loyola. At this time she also studied music at Rosary College and The American Conservatory of Music in Chicago.
Helen met John at Loyola University in fall, 1948 and the two were married in June of 1950. They lived in Chicago until 1957 before heading to Kotzebue, Alaska; Stevensville, Montana; Red Lodge, Montana; and settled in Missoula where they lived happily ever after.
Helen was a creative woman in so many areas--cooking, sewing, painting, drawing, etc.. And when challenged later in life with cancer, she was a courageous fighter in the face of threatening illnesses. Today she rests alongside Uncle John at St. Mary's cemetery in Missoula.
Watch over us, Aunt Helen, and enjoy eternal life with your beloved and family. God bless us and save us and keep us from harm.
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