William E. Helmick

William "Bill" Edward Helmick went to be with his Lord and Savior Jesus Christ September 30, 2023, surrounded by his loved ones at UPMC Western Maryland after a brief illness.
Bill was born on May 20, 1928, in Fairmont, West Virginia. He was the only son of Joe and Mary (Holt) Helmick. In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by his sister, Jacqueline Jo (Helmick) Gillis and by his first wife Ruth (Swiger) Helmick.
Bill married his second wife Kathy in 1978. He is survived by Kathy and his children, Cynthia Anne Morral and her husband Wade; his son William Stephen Helmick and his wife Cathy; by his sister, Mary Katherine (Helmick) Warash, Fairmont, West Virginia. He is survived by four granddaughters, Krista Kegg (Jamie), Melissa Cooper (Brice), Kelly Osterbind (Brandon), and Kristen Oakley (Stephen); 13 great grandchildren, Alaina, Addison, Britton, Emma, Cassidy, Hallie, Sophie, Will, Alex, Maisie, Ethan, Erin, and Logan.
Bill attended elementary school in Fairmont, WV. When he was a young teenager his father purchased a small farm near Mannington, WV. Bill graduated from Mannington High School in 1946.
He enlisted in the U.S. Army in September 1946 and spent one and a half years in South Korea as a member of the 7 Medical Battalion outside of Seoul. He returned home and entered Fairmont State College majoring in Industrial Arts Education. He married his high school sweetheart Ruth in 1948 and graduated from Fairmont State in May 1951. He liked to tell the story of how he brought his wife and their first child, his beautiful daughter Cindy, home from Fairmont General Hospital on the day he graduated from college.
In August he came to Cumberland as a new employee of the Allegany County Board of Education. He began his teaching career in September 1951. He taught at Fort Hill High School for one year. He then moved to the new Mount Savage High School in 1952 and enjoyed the next eighteen years teaching woodworking and drafting. At Mount Savage he enjoyed teaching "his shop boys" and looked forward to going to school from his home in LaVale every day.
While a teacher at Mount Savage he was very active in the Allegany County Teachers Association, serving in many capacities including president in 1964. He received his master's degree from West Virginia University.
In June 1970 he resigned his teaching position to accept an administrative position as Director of Adult Education at Allegany Community College. In the early years at ACC most adult education classes were held in the evening in public school facilities and in the brand-new Vo Tech Center in Cresaptown. As the program grew at ACC it added Community Services and then it all became the Continuing Education Program.
More and more classes were moved from the public-school facilities onto the ACC Campus. In the late 1970s, Bill was responsible for writing a federal grant which brought funding for the construction of the CE Building at the college.
He liked to tell the story of being interviewed by a federal grant inspector who asked, "Do you have anything personal to be gained by constructing this building?" He was very surprised when Bill said: "Yes." "What would that be he inquired?" Bill replied "I have been on this campus for six or seven years and have been moved to three or four different offices. I would like an office, with a window, where I can look out and see the grass." The official laughed and said: "I think that would be very acceptable." It happened.
Bill really enjoyed his fifteen years at the college having met thousands of adults from our tri-state community and working with his excellent adult education teachers and the faculty and administration at ACC.
He retired on June 30, 1985, as Associate Dean of Adult and Continuing Education. He was very thankful for his thirty-four years in education in Allegany County. He always thanked God for the happy and healthy life given him with such a marvelous family.
He always said that it was almost like God had given him two wonderful lives. The first with Ruth and their two children and the second with Kathy and the grandchildren and great grandchildren. He had gotten to hold his first granddaughter on his 50 birthday just six months before his marriage to Kathy.
After his retirement from education, he did work full time for 6 ½ years as assistant director at Cumberland Neighborhood Housing Services. He enjoyed working with the city and the wonderful people of the North End. He retired from CNHS in June 1992 after his 64 birthday.
In his retirement years he enjoyed the time spent with family attending their weddings, college graduations, family camping, and lots of travel especially the three trips to Israel. He also found much time to golf and work in his garden.
He was a member of the Cumberland Camp of Gideons. He enjoyed singing in church choirs and singing barbershop with the Chorus of the Potomac, Cumberland Valley Chord Factory, and Flight 93 Memorial Chorus.
Bill was also very proud of his association for many years with Rusty Kitzmiller and the Calvary Christian Academy Golf Marathon which raised monies to support the education programs at Calvary. The marathon later became known as the CCA Spriggs-Helmick Golf Marathon in recognition of their tremendous commitment to Christian education.
Bill always thanked God for the life he was given. He accepted Jesus as his Savior and Lord as a 17-year-old while at a Youth for Christ rally at Mannington High School. His parents were strong Christians and he had always been involved with church activities. As a teenager he and his family were members of the EUB (Evangelical United Brethren) church. He and his first wife and children were members of the LaVale United Methodist Church for more than 25 years. He and Kathy have been active in church at Grace Memorial Community Church and for the past 25 years at Faith Presbyterian Church in LaVale where he served as a Deacon and Deacon Emeritus
Bill lived 63 years on Henry Drive in LaVale and enjoyed all of it. He will be missed by his wife and his family who he loved so much. He never left the house to go anywhere without saying to Kathy: "I love you." He always ended his conversations with his children and grandchildren with the same words.
Pallbearers will be John and Ron Helmick, Jamie Kegg, Stephen Oakley, and Brandon Osterbind.
Family and friends will be received at Scarpelli Funeral Home, P.A., 15205 McMullen Hwy, Cresaptown, on Friday, October 6, 2023 from 11:00 a.m. until 1:00 p.m. A funeral service will immediately follow at 1:00 p.m. with Pastor Joshua Jarvis officiating.
Interment will be held at the Maryland State Veterans Cemetery at Rocky Gap. Military honors will be accorded by Ft. Cumberland Post 13 Honor Guard.
If friends desire, memorial contributions may be made to Gideon Camp U07018, P.O. Box 2201 Cumberland, MD 21502 or Goodwill Retirement Community, 891 Dorsey Hotel Rd., Grantsville, MD 21536 Attention Cortney or a charity of one's choice.