Helen Hunt Martin

Helen Hunt Jackson Martin was born July 10, 1919 in McCormick, South Carolina to Sallie Mae Tucker Jackson and Thomas Lee Jackson. She was the fifth of thirteen children. She accepted Christ at an early age at Little Mills Church in Willington, South Carolina. She graduated from Bettis Academy in Trenton South Carolina, majoring in education. Upon graduation, she taught school in Trenton and subsequently enlisted in the Women’s Army Auxiliary Corps (WAACs) in Fort Des Moines, Iowa. She married Elroy L. Martin in 1945, left the army after WWII, and reared five children. She traveled extensively at home and abroad – visiting the states of Kansas, Missouri, Illinois, Virginia, Washington State, Colorado, Washington D.C., New York, Georgia, South Carolina, Hawaii, and California – as well as the countries of Germany, Turkey, Greece, Italy, Libya, Gibraltar, the Caribbean, and the Virgin Islands. She was a voracious reader and interested in many cultures. Initially hospitalized at Walter Reed Hospital in Washington D.C. in 1961, her husband was transferred to the VA Hospital in Long Beach, California the following year. Subsequently, Helen moved the entire family to Harbor City, California. Unfortunately, Elroy passed away in 1964. As a single parent, she was crowned Queen for a Day in that now-vintage television show. However, she remained active in the Queen for a Day Club until 1995. Moreover, she bought a home in Long Beach, California where she lived for more than fifty years. Affectionately known as “Miss Kitty,” she had the distinction of being the second longest living resident on the block and was unanimously hailed as the “best mother ever.” Preceded in death by her son, Winston, in 1973, she now leaves to cherish her memory - two brothers, Robert and Waddell Jackson; four children, Jackie Mitchell, Gwen Matthews, Bill Martin, and Greg Martin; two daughters-in law, Lyn and Roxanne Martin (and her brother, Norman Williams); a son-in law, Matt Matthews, and a grandson, Lewis Matthews; a niece, Cynthia Sands, and a nephew, Fenton Sands; a nephew, Thomas Mosley, and a niece, Betty Mosley; a niece, Linda Figgins, a nephew, Chester Jennings, and a nephew, Joe Jackson. She also leaves a host of great grand nephews and nieces, cousins, caring friends, and neighbors.