Helen Lee Walden

Helen was born on January 24,1936 in Bloomington Springs, Jackson County, Tennessee. Her family moved to Lakeland, Florida in 1943, where she attended Kathleen High School.

She was married for 61 years to Henry Mervin Walden until he passed in 2015. She worked at Florida Tile for about 42 years, where she spent most of her time as a lead lady.

Helen was a loving wife and mother; she loved people and had the gift of making people smile; she never met a stranger and could start a conversation with anyone. Helen loved to garden and could make anything grow, she like watching sports, bowling on a league with her teammates from Florida Tile, water skiing, and fishing. In her younger days she would gather the neighborhood children to play baseball.

She was preceded in death by her parents, James Vestal Veteto and Era Hazel King Veteto, and a brother Donald Eugene. She is survived by daughters Patricia Haberle and Shirley Pretty; sons Richard Walden (Ramona) and Donald Walden (Vanessa); her sisters Virginia Collier, Ina Gengler (Joe) and Mildred Wielenbeck; her grandchildren John Preston, Melissa Good (Ed), Elaine Watkins (Jessie), Michael Pretty (Kara), Heather Hornsby (Ronnie), Dustin Walden, and Andrew Walden, and her 21 great-grandchildren.

Visiting hours will be held at Ott-Laughlin Funeral Home, 2198 K-Ville Ave, Auburndale, Florida, 33823 on Tuesday, October 1, 2024, at 10:00 am, followed by funeral at 11:00 am. Graveside service will follow at Glen Abbey Memorial Garden on the property.

In lieu of flowers donations may be made in her memory to Lighthouse Ministries, P.O. Box 3112, Lakeland, FL 33802. Condolences may be sent to the family at www.ottlaughlinfuneralhome.com