October 16,1929 – Tuesday, July 20, 2021

Helen passed away peacefully on Tuesday morning with both daughters by her side. Helen was predeceased by husband William (2005) and her parents Ruth Emily Andrus Putt and Leslie Thomas Dart. She will be very much missed by daughters Rosemary (Paul) and Lois (Frank) and grandsons Joshua and Zachary who were a great joy in her life. Helen was born and grew up on Hamilton’s East Mountain. After high school, Helen became a switchboard operator with The Bell. She enjoyed her time at The Bell as a “Bell Girl” and made some lifelong friends there. Helen eventually returned to the switchboard at Eaton’s, McMaster University Medical Centre , and retired from the former Hamilton Psychiatric Hospital. One of Helen’s favourite adventures in her twenties was the 1952 bicycle trip she made with the Hamilton Hostel Association from Jasper to Banff. Her trip through the Rockies was one of the highlights of her life and from that trip she developed a lifelong love of the Rockies. After a time of travel, Helen was ready to settle down on the West Mountain in the family home where she lived for 58 years. Helen was a member of St. Andrew’s United Church where she was a member of the UCW and taught Sunday School. Helen’s life was filled with hobbies. She loved to sew and do needlework. She took classes at Mohawk College and through the Embroiderers Guild to develop those skills. Genealogy was Helen’s passion. She spent many hours researching and meticulously documenting the family tree. Every story had to be backed with documented evidence. Helen and Bill spent many hours in Canada, the United States and Britain seeking out family connections. Helen’s legacy to the family is her record of centuries of family history. Helen was a fiercely, independent person and that personality trait was strong till the end. During the last couple of months of Helen’s life, she lived out the words, “eat the chocolate, drink the wine”, as those two treats kept her going as she lost interest in eating. The family would like to thank the wonderful, caring Nursing and PSW staff in the Cedar Grove home area of St. Joseph’s Villa for taking such good care of Helen during her final year of life. The family would especially like to extend our gratitude to Nurse Alison for her ongoing care and support throughout this Covid time. Helen said that she would like to help local children with limited resources because she was one once. Therefore, in lieu of flowers, donations to Food4Kids Hamilton or City Kidz would be appreciated by the family.