Helen Willingham Alexander

Helen Willingham Alexander May 16, 1919 October 7, 2014 Helen Willingham Alexander died on October 7, 2014, at the age of 95, in Austin. Helen was extremely active and productive despite the multiple sclerosis that she faced for the last 60 years of her life. Graveside services coordinated by Wilkirson-Hatch-Bailey Funeral Home will be at 1:00 p.m., Saturday, October 11, at Waco Memorial Park, Waco, followed by a reception for relatives and friends at the Merchant home in Waco. The Riverbend Church in Austin will also host a memorial service on Monday, October 13, at 11 a.m. Helen was born on May 16, 1919, to Carl and Janie Walther in Little Rock, Arkansas. She grew up in Waco, Texas, near what used to be the outskirts of town in the Brookview Hills neighborhood. Older Wacoans may recall the family home at 36th and Erath because of the large aviaries built there by Carl Walther, who turned his hobby into a successful small business when he began shipping exotic birds around the world in the late 1940's. At Dean Highland Elementary, Helen was "double promoted," and she later graduated from Waco High School. She attended Baylor University before moving to Washington, DC, following her marriage in 1940 to Bob Willingham, who was a student at George Washington University and an employee of the U.S. Treasury Department. Helen and Bob returned to Waco in late 1941, and Helen became extremely active in church and civic activities. She was a founding member of Columbus Avenue Baptist Church, president of Waco ISD PTA, and chair of the March of Dimes. In 1954, Helen was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. Eight years later, she could no longer drive, and by the early 1970's, she was making full use of a manual wheelchair. A decade later, she began using the battery-powered chairs that gave her the greater freedom and mobility that she loved. . For fifteen years, she operated her own childcare center, teaching scores of local children how to read and using her own phonics-based "textbook" as a major part of her instruction. Many of Helen's former students and their families have kept in touch with her over the years. In 1993, Helen married Harry Alexander, also of Waco. Mr. Alexander died in 1996, and three years later she moved to Austin to be closer to her family. The last years of Helen's life were full, though increasingly challenging. As recently as 2010, she taught a weekly Bible class at Park Bend Health Center, where she was also a three-term president of the residents' council. She raised money for a flagpole and stone marker, and when the American flag was unfurled in front of the center on July 4, 2004, Helen presided over the ceremony and spoke eloquently to almost a hundred guests. An effective advocate, for years Helen had friends throughout the Austin community. It must be said, however, that some of her dearest friends were German shepherds and several toy poodles of dubious ancestry, especially the last of the line, Dolly. Through late August of this year, Helen was a dedicated volunteer at least two mornings a week in the ICU waiting room at St. David's North Austin Medical Center, greeting and directing visitors and sneaking candy to children. In 2009 she received the Frist Humanitarian Award for her overall contributions to NAMC and was honored with a breakfast at the Four Seasons Hotel in Austin. She also volunteered at Riverbend Church, whose many members may remember her cheerfully handing out programs at the beginning of the first morning service. The church, its people, and its music were a wonderful blessing for Helen. At the end of her life, she remained devoted to the flowers she had planted and nurtured for years in the arbor at Park Bend Health Center. Helen was predeceased by her elder son, Robert W. Bob Willingham. She is survived by her remaining son, John Willingham, and wife, Wendy, of Portland, Ore.; daughter-in-law, Carol Willingham, of Salem, Va.; step-daughter, Jean Alexander Samples, and husband, Bob, of Houston; five grandchildren, Emily Willingham and husband, Marshall; of California; Rob Willingham and wife, Nancy Logan, of Salem, Va., Thomas Willingham and wife, Jennie, of Austin, Anne Merchant and husband, Shane, of Waco, and Kari Zilkenat and husband, Glenn, of League City. Helen is also survived by 11 great-grandchildren, T.H., Molly, Sydney, Rachel, Ben, Jack, James, Will, George, Clara Jane and Susie. Please honor Helen's life by adopting a pet or planting and caring for anything that blooms. The family wants to thank the many friends, admirers, and supporters of Helen, especially Ann Cloyd, Mark Caddell, and Tina Cavanaugh of Austin; and the staff of St. David's North Austin Medical Center whose kindness toward Helen as both a volunteer and a patient meant so much to her. Helen also had many friends among the residents and staff at Park Bend Health Center, where she spent the last eleven years of her life. The family invites you to leave a message or memory in our "Memorial Guestbook" at www.WHBfamily.com.