Carl Christian Martti Helenius

He passed after a battle an extended illness. He was preceded in death by his parents, Leo Martti Helenius and Birgitta Wikstrom Helenius of Finland. Carl is survived by his loving wife of 29 years, Mary Faulkinberry Helenius, his adult children Christian Russell Martti Helenius and Linnea Frances Elizabeth Helenius, and his sister Maria Helenius-Nyman, (Kenneth), and their adult children Vanessa and Niklas Nyman.

Carl was born on April 20, 1964 in Ekenas, Finland. He loved Finnish nature, and he and his family spent many happy summer days at their cabin on the family’s small forested island in the Finnish archipelago. After completing high school, Carl served his compulsory military service for the Finnish army. Both of Carl’s parents were educators, and the importance of education was instilled in him and his sister. He earned his Master of Science (MS) degree in Electrical Engineering from the Helsinki University of Technology, where he was President of FASTEC. He moved to Dallas, Texas to join Ericsson Network Systems. It was at about that time that Carl met Mary, a finance professional who was employed by Frito-Lay. It was a brainiac match from the beginning! He later earned his MBA from the Cox School of Business at Southern Methodist University in Dallas.

For several years, Carl and Mary traveled the U.S. and the world visiting many states and countries in the Caribbean, Mexico, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Greece, Italy, France, Spain, Germany, Sweden and of course, Finland. Carl’s fluency in the Finnish, Swedish, and English languages helped facilitate their travels! While their careers progressed, they became parents to Christian in 1998 and Linnea in 2000. Carl became a stay-at-home parent when the kids were very young, meeting every challenge and teaching them about their world. In 2003, the family relocated from Dallas to the Tampa Bay area. In 2006, Carl and Mary switched roles, and although he was back at work, he served as a Cub Scout Den Leader and Youth Soccer Coach. The family also enjoyed many camping, boating, snow skiing and fishing trips.

Carl’s long career was in software design/development and product management for companies in the telecommunications, Internet of Things, and financial services areas, lastly at PSCU, Inc. in St. Petersburg, FL. He enjoyed tennis, golf and biking and was an avid cook and griller, whose hobby was researching and trying out new recipes. He loved hot spices but abhorred onions! Carl enjoyed watching ice hockey and “American” football, especially the Dallas Cowboys and Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Lastly, he was an animal lover and had a special fondness for dogs, including Minkka in Finland, Cowboy and then Rowdy.

The family wishes to thank all of those who loved and cared about Carl. There will be a visitation and memorial service on Friday, October 21 at Hillsboro Memorial Funeral Home, 2323 W. Brandon Blvd., Brandon, FL at 5:00-7:00 p.m. Those who wish to remember Carl in a special way, in lieu of flowers, may make donations in his memory to the American Red Cross of Central Florida or to Tampa Bay Watch. Please leave online condolences and make donations at https://www.joincake.com/memorial-pages/carl-helenius/#obituary.