Selden Stuart Hellmann Jr.

SELDEN STUART HELLMANN, JR., friend and mentor to many, died Saturday, September 1, 2007. He was born July 5, 1930 in San Francisco to S. Stuart Hellmann, Sr. and Margaret Bentley Hellmann, both of whom were members of pioneer California families. Stuart spent his early childhood in California and Washington, DC and moved to New Orleans with his father during World War II. He attended Newman High School in New Orleans and graduated from Gulf Coast Military Academy in Long Beach, Mississippi. Stu was accepted to the US Naval Academy, but decided to attend Tulane University on a Navy ROTC scholarship. At Tulane he became a member of Phi Delta Theta fraternity and, as a senior, was named Outstanding ROTC Midshipman. Three days after graduating from Tulane, Stuart married his college sweetheart, Betty Trelford, of Houston, and together they moved to Coronado Island, CA where Ensign Hellmann was stationed on the USS Mansfield. He served eight months in the Western Pacific during the Korean War. Upon his return he entered the USN Submarine School in Groton, CT, and after graduation served on the USS Baya, again in San Diego. Having retired from the Navy, Stuart and Betty moved to Houston in 1955 where he began is 45 year career in the securities industry with Underwood, Neuhaus & Co. In 1960 he joined Goodbody & Co. in Houston and then Jacksonville, FL until 1966. It was then that Stuart began his long association with Rotan Mosle, Inc. and its successor firms, PaineWebber and UBS Financial Services. His activities in the securities business included terms on the Board of the Midwest Stock Exchange, the Advisory Committee of the Texas Permanent School Fund, and as President of the Stock and Bond Club of Houston. Stuart was known for his high ethical standards and served as an Arbitrator for the National Association of Securities Dealers and as a member of the NASD Business Conduct Committee. He was a member of the Houston Country Club where he served as Vice President of the Board of Directors for two terms. He was also a member of the Coronado Club and the Houston Club where he served as President. Stuart was a devout Christian and a very active member of Christ Church Cathedral. He served four terms as the Senior Warden of the Vestry and also as Chair of the Cathedral Endowment Fund. On the Diocesan level, Stuart served as Finance Chairman and President of the Protestant Episcopal Church Council of the Diocese of Texas, and as a trustee of the Bishop Quin Foundation, the Episcopal Foundation of Texas, and St. Stephen's Episcopal School. A good athlete, he played basketball and football in high school and was an avid golfer for many years. Stu also loved the camaraderie with his many good friends in the Red Room. He touched many lives with his good humor, his ability to listen, and his genuine interest in and love for people. Stuart's love for his family was the framework for his life. He was preceded in death by his daughter, Cynthia, in 1973. He is survived by Betty, his adoring wife of 55 years; his daughter Catherine Sweeney and her husband Mac; his son Richard and his wife Amanda; his grandchildren Walter, Stuart, Peter, and Jordan Sweeney, and Emily and Clare Hellmann. Also surviving are his sisters Roberta Davidson and husband Zack of Destrehan, LA, and Charlene Scibal and husband David of Orange, VA and their families. Friends are cordially invited to a visitation with the family from four o'clock in the afternoon until six o'clock in the evening on Monday, the 3rd of September, in the Library at Geo. H. Lewis & Sons, 1010 Bering Drive in Houston. The family will gather for a private interment service at Memorial Oaks Cemetery in Houston on Tuesday morning, the 4th of September. The memorial service will be conducted at two o'clock in the afternoon on Tuesday, the 4th of September, at Christ Church Cathedral, 1117 Texas Avenue in Houston. For those desiring, contributions in memory of Selden Stuart Hellmann, Jr. may be directed to, Pancreatic Cancer Research in care of Dr. James Abbruzzesse, MD Anderson Cancer Center, 1400 Holcombe Blvd., Unit 426, Houston, TX 77030; the Christ Church Cathedral Endowment Fund, 1117 Texas Ave., Houston, TX 77002; or the Forum of Civics Foundation, 2503 Westheimer, Houston, TX 77098.