Helen Marie Kolodey

1941 - 2014

Helen Marie Kolodey passed away Saturday, May 31, 2014. Memorial service: 2 p.m. Tuesday at Rest Haven Funeral Home, 2500 State Highway 66 East, Rockwall 75087. Visitation: 6 to 8 p.m. Monday at the funeral home. Memorials: May be made to the Dallas Arboretum And Botanical Garden, and the National Kidney Foundation. Helen was born in Avery on Oct. 28, 1941. After graduating from Avery High School in 1960, she moved to Fort Worth to work and continue her education. With assistance from a partial scholarship from First United Methodist Church she worked her way through Texas Wesleyan College, graduating in 1982 with a bachelor of business administration degree. In 1983 she began her career with Alcon Laboratories in Fort Worth as a customer service supervisor, later advancing to department trainer and then training manager. Her expertise in training was highly regarded across the company and she traveled to Alcon facilities throughout the U.S. and to Beijing, China, and Istanbul, Turkey, where she trained sales, marketing and customer service professionals from numerous Asian and European countries. She retired to her home in Heath in 2007. Helen enjoyed classical music, reading, history and the beauty of nature. With Fred, she traveled extensively to national parks and historical sites in the U.S. and Canada and to many historic and scenic venues in more than 24 countries around the world. From her childhood on a small tomato farm near Avery, Helen worked hard, achieved much, loved her family and lived life on her terms. She is loved by her family and friends and will be missed, but never forgotten. Helen was preceded in death by her parents, Delvous Monroe "D.M." Gable and Maudie Helen Jones Gable; sisters, Alta and Dorothy Gable; and brothers, Jim and Jerry Gable. Survivors: Her husband, Fred Kolodey; son, John Anthony "Tony" Brutsche'; daughters, Stephanie Brutsche', Staci Stager, Trecia Dilger, Michele Winn; sisters, Maxine Pagitt and Edith Burckhardt; and eight wonderful grandchildren.