Helen Clara Butler was born to Pearl Wyche Zellner and William Zellner on April 16, 1932 in Macon, Georgia. During the Great Depression in the Jim Crow South, Helen and her family were sharecroppers in Lamar County Georgia.
Because of the lack of education opportunities for African American students in Lamar County, Helen attended boarding school at the Hubbard Training School in Forsyth, Georgia. There she met her future husband Joe H. Butler. When Helen was fourteen, her family moved to Atlanta where she attended and graduated from historic Booker T. Washington High School.
After high school, Helen worked and attended Spelman College until she reconnected with her childhood sweetheart Joe. They were married September 25th, 1954 and moved to Riverside,
California. As a military wife, she and Joe raised four children in California, Germany and New York.
Along the way, Helen worked several sales and technical jobs before retiring from Contel Telephone Company in Victorville, California. Helen had a keen interest in travel and had the opportunity to visit several countries in Europe including Germany, France, Italy, Spain, England, Belgium and Switzerland. She also enjoyed a dream trip to Asia where she visited Thailand, Macau, Hong Kong and China where the highlight was walking on the Great Wall.
Helen accepted Jesus Christ as her Lord and personal savior at a young age, loved the Lord and would often say “I pray for everybody”. She was an active member of Emmanuel Temple C.M.E. Church for almost thirty years where she was a member of the Loves Messengers Choir and the Willing Workers auxilliary.
Helen was preceded in death by her husband Joe H. Butler and son Joe H. Butler, Jr.
She is survived by her son Gerald Butler and daughter-in-law Juanita Butler of Las Vegas, NV and son Duane Butler and daughter-in-law Yvette Butler of Los Angeles, CA; daughter Sandra Butler of Las Vegas, NV; granddaughters Jasmine Butler of Las Vegas, NV and Aliyah Butler of Ann Arbor, MI; grandsons Jabari Butler and Khari Butler of Los Angeles, CA; great granddaughter Alexia Butler Las Vegas, NV; sister Effie Walker of Tampa, FL and a host of nieces and nephews.
Helen was one-of-kind and gentle soul who loved to laugh and make others laugh. One of her trademark sayings was “I don’t meet any strangers”. She would talk to anyone and try to bless them with her spirit. Her life was a lesson on how treat people with respect and dignity. She will be missed dearly by family and friends throughout the world.
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