Helen Therese Eltrich

Helen Therese Eltrich, of Tacoma, WA, died on October 30, 2023. She was 101 years old. Helen was born on June 20, 1922 in Wetaskiwin, Alberta, Canada, the youngest of 8 children of
Charles Borromeo Eltrich and Julia Anna (Heisler) Eltrich. The family moved to Shelton, WA in November, 1922, and later to Tacoma where Helen attended parochial school and graduated
from Stl Leo High School in 1940. 

She worked for Armour Company in Seattle before returning to Tacoma to work for West Coast Grocery in the accounting department. She was a member of St. Leo Parish and sang in their choir as well as at Holy Rosary Parish.
Helen and her sister Jeanne built a home in Gig Harbor, where they attended St. Nicholas parish and were active members of the Visitation Guild. They enjoyed hosting family and friends
for meals and events, always generous with their time and resources, and willing to help anyone in need. Helen had a special compassion for animals. She and her sister shared many hobbies,
such as travel, and various art and crafts–ceramics and china painting, and watercolor painting. Helen always had a ready smile and sympathetic ear for others. Her love for people and her
enthusiasm for life were infectious, as were her feisty spirit in the face of adversity. She was preceded in death by her parent and brothers Martin and wife Peggy, Francis and wife
Madeline, Ray and wife Norine, as well as her sisters Jeanne, Marcella and husband Earnest Burrows, Julietta and husband Clarence Roth, and Dorothy and husband Clyde Gleason, as well
as several nieces and nephews.
Surviving family members include nieces and nephews in the Tacoma area and beyond. Rosary and Vigil Service will be held at Gaffney Funeral Home on Sunday, November 12th at
4:00 PM. Mass of Christian Burial will be Monday, November 13th at 11:00 AM at St. Charles Borromeo Catholic Church followed by a reception. Burial at Calvary Cemetery to follow.

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