Helen Williams Bailey

Helen Williams Bailey died early Friday morning in Starkville, Mississippi. She was 86.    She was patient, kind, and a woman of tremendous personal faith and tolerance for the views of others. It was quite common to hear her say, "It takes all kinds to make a world." She read novels and biographies at a clip of 2-3 per week and could knock down the New York Times Sunday Crossword in a New York minute...in ink, of course.    She grew up in Birmingham during the Great Depression, one of five children. In her early career she worked for the FBI in Washington, DC. She returned to Birmingham and later married the choir director at her church. Together they raised three children, and she eventually returned to the workforce as a Human Resources manager at Brookwood Medical Center. She was active in the churches she attended throughout her life, taking great pleasure over the last several years in the friendships she developed among the members of her Sunday School Class at Mountain Brook Baptist Church.    She is preceded in death by her husband, William Elliott Bailey, and a daughter, Elaine Bailey Miller. She is survived by a daughter, Dr. Elizabeth Ann Bailey of Starkville, MS, a son, John Elliott "Jack" Bailey of Mill Valley, CA, and two grandchildren: Michael Bailey Miller of Birmingham and Fiona Colette Bailey of Mill Valley.    Funeral services will be Tuesday, May 6, at Elmwood Chapel in Birmingham. Visitation at 1pm; service at 2pm with burial immediately following. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Mountain Brook Baptist Church.  She will be missed. She already is.