Helen Eileen McNeel

Helen Eileen Travis McNeel went to be with our Lord on Tuesday, June 4, 2013. She was born to the late Lucien and Laura Mae Travis on June 2, 1932 in Galveston, Texas. She graduated from Ball High School in 1950 and received a Bachelor’s Degree in Elementary Education in 1972 from the University of Houston. She taught elementary school in the Galveston and LaMarque school districts and was passionate about making a difference in the lives of her students, doing so until she retired in 1996.

Helen is survived by her loving husband; Charles Daniel (Dan) McNeel, Jr., children: son; Jay Johnson and wife, Allison, daughter; Linda Robershaw, step-daughters; Patrice Sallons, SueAnn Sparks, Lisa Owens and Alyson Jackson, sisters: Gayle Ross and Carolyn Porchet. Grandchildren: Jimmie Danielle Johnson, Presley Robershaw, James Sallons, Lilly Sallons, Casey Sparks, Brandon Sparks, Riley Owens, Sean Jackson, Kayla Jackson, Stephanie Soileau, Matthew Mason and Samuel Mason as well as numerous nieces, nephews, cousins and one great-granddaughter. She was preceded in death by her parents and older brother, Bobby Joe Travis.

Helen was a very talented and loving person as well as a wonderful wife, mother and grandmother. She made everyone who came into her home feel as though they were part of the family. As a wife, Helen was fiercely devoted to her husband, doing whatever it took to make him happy. As a mother, she was incredibly loving, kind, and strong. She raised her children to be a proper gentleman and a lady in a world where that wasn’t considered important anymore. She would make any personal sacrifice necessary so her family would have whatever they needed, and wanted. As a grandmother, she took great delight in her grandchildren. They were her greatest treasure. She loved to spoil them and was well known for giving them more than they thought possible.

Visitation will be Sunday, June 9, 2013, from 4pm to 7pm. Funeral service will be held on Monday, June 10, 2013, at 10am, all services will be at Forest Park East Funeral Home, 21620 Gulf Freeway Webster, TX.