HELEN "HONEY" ECELBARGER

On November 2, 2024, Helen (Honey) Aldine Ecelbarger went to be with her Lord at the age of 102. Helen was born on February 7, 1922, in Akron, Ohio, to Edward and Anna Reinhart, and she had 2 sisters (Betty Jane and Irene Dolly) and 1 brother (William). After graduating from high school, Helen completed business school. She later combined her secretarial abilities with her amazing leadership skills to be a successful office manager at several businesses. She met the love of her life, Paul Richard Ecelbarger, on the tennis courts in Big Run, Pennsylvania. They were married in Brady, Texas, in 1943. Helen loved her role as an officer's wife, and her social skills and love for entertaining were put to great use. Helen and Paul raised two children, Richard and Paula, until Paul's untimely death in 1959 in a tragic B-47 airplane crash.

After Paul's death in Lincoln, Nebraska, Helen moved with the children to Tucson, Arizona. Helen immediately fell in love with all things Arizona, especially University of Arizona sports. She often said it was important to be well trained and to like your job in order to be happy. Her Tucson jobs included being the office manager at the Davis-Monthan Air Force Base Officers' Club, the Executive Director of the Tucson Restaurant Association, and a Junior Accountant at Hughes Aircraft, while she also periodically sold real estate.

Helen had a deep and abiding faith, which helped her get through the challenges and losses she encountered. When she moved to Blythe in 2003 to be with her daughter and son-in-law, she joined Zion Lutheran Church. Helen was a fun-loving person who was happiest when surrounded by family and friends and while entertaining. She considered flying the American flag as important, and she said the best way to celebrate anything was to love one another. Helen's favorite hobby was anything to do with arts and crafts, which included needlepoint, knitting, making hats, sewing, tole painting, and oil painting. Helen was known for her laugh, bright blue eyes, love of the Lord, outgoing personality, and her ability to make people feel better when with her.

Helen was preceded in death by her parents, her siblings, and both her beloved husband and dear son. Her dearly loved son-in-law Gerry Hoemann passed away 3 weeks after she did. She is survived by her daughter Paula Hoemann, daughter-in-law Laura Ecelbarger, Carol Wilson Burkhardt (Dick) who was like a daughter to her, and 7 grandchildren: Jodi (Austin) Lucious, Jill Hoemann, David (Olivia) Cude, Michael Cude, Katie (Richard) Dobson, Michele (Robert) Jaeger, and Paul (Bess) Ecelbarger. In addition, she will be greatly missed by several great grandchildren and great-great grandchildren, nieces and nephews, and numerous cherished friends.

A memorial service will be held Saturday, April 26, 2025, at Zion Lutheran Church, 721 E. Chanslorway, Blythe, California, at 11 o' clock a.m. A reception will follow the service in the church Fellowship Hall. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to Wounded Warrior Project (woundedwarriorproject.org, 855-448-3997).