Marilyn Vell Hellman

Marilyn Hellman, 95, passed away peacefully on October 25, 2023, in Scottsdale, Arizona. Marilyn was born on January 9, 1928, to Ed and Nancy Toler. She grew up in Matewan, West Virginia and attended Matewan High School. Marilyn was raised in a home of modest means during the Great Depression and learned early on the value of a buck. She was close with her Aunt Sally, a former schoolteacher who instilled in her the importance of an education. Marilyn joined the US Navy in 1951 and served during the Korean conflict, receiving an honorable discharge in 1954. She married her husband Myron soon after discharge and settled in Pennsylvania, first in Philadelphia, then relocating to Carbondale to care for her ailing in-laws in their later years. Marilyn raised her two sons, Dave and Steve, as a single Mother in Scranton. She devoted everything she had to raising them. She was a homemaker extraordinaire, always providing top notch home cooked meals and desserts (her specialty) for her boys and maintaining a spotless home, all the while holding down two jobs (she was especially fond of her time working at Marywood College) and never failing to attend her sons’ baseball and basketball games and golf matches. Marilyn’s boys were sports fanatics growing up, so she opted to become a sports fan herself in order to share more closely in their interests. Never one to do things halfway, she became a diehard Boston Red Sox fan and watched countless Bosox games over the years. Marilyn relocated to Lebanon in the late 1980s to be closer to her older sister Madeline. She worked for many years in the Lebanon County juvenile probation office and also as a sales associate at Boscov's department store, holding two jobs into her seventies.She was an active member of the First Baptist Church of Lebanon, regularly attending Sunday services and weekly Bible study, and baking her award-winning pecan pie that spawned many a tussle for the last piece at church gatherings. Marilyn lived in Lebanon until a few years ago, serving as her older sister Madeline’s primary caregiver (despite being in her early nineties herself) until her sister’s passing. She then moved to Scottsdale and lived her remaining years with her son Steve and daughter-in-law Candace, enjoying the splendor of the colorful desert sunsets.

Marilyn was especially fond of Thanksgiving and Christmas. Her greatest joy came from playing hostess to her family and friends, making home cooked holiday meals for them, telling stories, and sharing good times and memories, a practice she continued well into her eighties. Marilyn adored her grandchildren Elizabeth and Sam and could often be heard regaling family and friends about their many accomplishments. Marilyn was a tireless worker with an indomitable spirit and an iron will. Years ago, while attending one of her grandson’s little league baseball games, she spotted a coach wearing a shirt with a slogan that deeply resonated with her and captured her philosophy on the recipe for living a fulfilling life, and quite frankly, the way she lived hers: “All it Takes is All You’ve Got”.

Marilyn acquired the moniker Queen Mum during her many travels to visit her family after retirement, frequently remarking how they treated her like a Queen. She regularly spoke of living a life well enough to qualify her for a grand reunion in heaven with her family, friends, dogs and granddogs. She most certainly cleared the bar with plenty of room to spare. Godspeed, Queen Mum!

Marilyn is survived by her son CAPT David Hellman (USN, Ret) and his wife Robbie of Virginia, her son Attorney Steven Hellman and his wife Candace of Arizona, her granddaughter Elizabeth Hellman and her fiancé Matt Loewenstein of Virginia, and her grandson Sam Hellman and his wife Carolina of Virginia. Marilyn was preceded in death by her sister Madeline Epling. Marilyn’s final resting place will be in Arlington National Cemetery. The family requests that anyone interested in honoring her memory do so by way of a donation to the First Baptist Church of Lebanon, 20 Linden Road, Lebanon, PA 17042 (fblebanon.org or (717) 274-8080).