Helen Marie Kluz

KLUZ, HELEN MARIE MCNEIRNEY Age 73 of Mt. Laurel passed away January 19, 2011. She was born December 16, 1937 in Pittsburgh, PA to the late John C. McNeirney and Ruth Bildstein McNeirney. Helen was preceded in death by her parents. She is survived by her loving husband of 45 years, Theodore Martin Kluz; and her adoring children, Allison Ruth Kluz of Hoover and Derek Paul Kluz of Leeds. Her older brother John and his family of Atlanta survived her as well. Helen spent her life caring for others as a registered nurse who worked in about every nursing discipline possible. She was trained by Shadyside Hospital and the University of Pittsburgh and graduated in 1958 and became charge nurse in the Men's ward at the hospital. In 1960 she moved to Children's Hospital as staff nurse in the infants surgical unit and ICU. In 1961 she was promoted to clinical instructor in the operating room theater. In 1963 as international tensions rose Helen heard the call from the USAF and volunteered to become a military nurse. After graduating from military training she was assigned to the huge USAF international hospital, Wilford Hall, in San Antonio TX. She blossomed there into a versatile marvel working in the emergency room, clinics, and Pediatrics. Then the USAF promoted her to instructor in basic nursing for the new corpsmen entering the service after Tonkin Gulf. During that time Headquarters USAF asked Helen to appear in the new recruiting film which she did and enjoyed every minute of it. In 1965 she met Theodore(Ted) who would six months later become her husband. She continued with the USAF until the birth of their first child. In 1974 she returned to work, while Ted was overseas with the USAF. She became staff nurse at Western Pa. Psychiatric Institute for challenged children and one year later moved with family to Montgomery Al. Nursing did not call her back until 1980 when she decided to enter geriatric work. Except for a brief stint in chemical dependency nursing at Bradford she remained in geriatrics until retirement in 2003. During that time Helen earned the respect of that community to the extent she was nominated several times to be Alabama Nursing Home Nurse of the year and served one year as president, Montgomery Area Nursing Home Council and one year as president of the a Long Term Care Professional Nurses Association of Alabama. She also earned a reputation throughout Alabama for being able to fix broken nursing homes and controlling the spread of infection. In fact many of her comrades referred to her as the "infection controller" of Alabama. In the community Helen was active in church choir especially at St John's and Church of the Ascension in Montgomery. Professionally she belonged to Rotary, Republican Women of Montgomery and The American Business Women's Assoc. (ABWA). She served in elective offices on several occasions. In her spare time she loved to paint, play the piano, garden and collect rare fish as well as take care of a long lineage of cats and dogs, especially Simon and Maverick. Memorials can be made in her name to the Humane Society of Shelby County or to The UAB Comprehensive Cancer Center. A funeral service will be conducted at 10AM Saturday, January 22nd at Ridout's Southern Heritage, Pelham, AL. The family also invites friends and associates to a viewing on Friday, from 6-8 PM. There will also be a memorial mass at St. Stephen the Martyr at 10AM on January 29th.