Hélène Courcelles-Carter

Hélène was born April 30, 1942, in Montréal, Québec, Canada to the late Laurent Courcelles and Germaine Charbonneau-Courcelles. She would often talk of her upbringing in Montréal, where she was cherished by multiple relatives in her extended family, with whom she was very close.

Hélène attended École Secondaire Providence Saint-Enfant-Jésus and received IBM key-punch training after graduation. She worked for Esso and International Harvester in Montréal until her marriage on April 24, 1964, to Leon Carter of Columbia, South Carolina, who was based in nearby Plattsburgh Air Force Base in Plattsburgh, New York.

Hélène and Leon lived on air bases in Plattsburgh; Caribou, Maine (Loring); and Kaiserslautern, Germany (Sembach); and settled in Syracuse, New York, in 1978. During her nearly 30 years in Syracuse, Hélène was very active with her children’s Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts troops and with her parish, St. Joseph the Worker, in Liverpool. She also worked for many years at the O’Brien & Gere engineering firm in their reproduction department.

In 1998, Hélène and Leon moved to the Denver area, where Hélène was a very active volunteer in her community. She volunteered in the school, church and rectory at St. Thomas More parish in Centennial as well as in many local charitable organizations. From her mother and the nuns at her boarding school in Montréal, Hélène had been taught to sew and knit from an early age and was rarely without a project at hand. She thoroughly enjoyed giving back by using her many talents and skills to help others in need.

Hélène loved being a wife, mother, and homemaker and was most happy when she was with her children and grandchildren, all of whom she adored. She is survived by her son, Patrick (Karen); daughters, Nancy (Charles Carpenter), Barbara (Jeffrey Hagen), and Jessica; and grandchildren, Jeffrey, Lauren and Sarah Carter and Caitlyn, Morgan and Tristan Hagen. She is also survived by her beloved brother and sister-in-law, Réal Courcelles and Monique Bernard-Courcelles; niece and goddaughter, Judith Courcelles; and nephews, Jocelyn Courcelles and Nicolas Courcelles, and their families, all of whom live in Canada.

A funeral mass will be said on Monday, April 17, at 11 a.m. at St. Thomas More church in Centennial, Colorado, followed by a reception from noon to 2 p.m. at St. Thomas More and interment at 3 p.m. at Olinger Chapel Hill in Centennial. To attend virtually please join us here http://live.helene-courcelles-carter.com

In honor of Hélène’s long-time volunteer service, her family requests that donations be made in her memory to: Hands All Around of Littleton, 5039 S. Michigan Court, Littleton, CO 80123-1709.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.olingerchapelhill.com for the Courcelles-Carter family.