Mary Helen Quintero

Mary Helen "Nena" Cuellar Quintero of Austin, TX passed away on December 16, 2025, at the age of 86. Maria Elena was born on June 18, 1939, in Lockhart, TX. Nena grew up in Lockhart where she attended Navarro Elementary and Austin, TX where she attended Metz Elementary and Allan Jr High. Mary Helen graduated from Stephen F Austin High School (on 12th Street) in May of 1958. She attended business school to learn administrative skills and bookkeeping.

In 1964, she married her husband, Manuel H Quintero, Jr in Austin, where they would later raise their daughters, Sandra and Sylvia. She stressed to her girls the importance of education and shared her appreciation for superior storytelling with her girls, which included a love of PBS Masterpiece and PBS Masterpiece Mysteries. She encouraged learning, so her daughters attended and graduated from multiple universities, including UT.

She worked at Kress's in downtown Austin, the IRS for more than 10 years, and AISD for 15 years of employment before finally retiring. She later volunteered as the bookkeeper for more than 10 years at her church, Holy Family ACC. She was an active gardener, avid traveler, voracious reader, and experimental cook, who was an incredible radio, sports, movie and music aficionado. She kept herself mentally active with computer games, sudoku, and mahjong, and her hands busy with crochet. She was also a devoted dog grandmama.

She is preceded in death by her parents, Agustin and Matiana Cuellar; her brother, Augustine Cuellar, of Austin; her sisters, Amalia Cuellar Zamora, of Conroe, TX and Esther Cuellar of Austin; her nephews, Tony and Roland Cuellar; niece, Sylvia Zamora; as well as a profusion of aunts, uncles and cousins. She is survived by her by her siblings - Guadalupe Reyna, Mayo Cuellar (Anita Cuellar) and Margaret Cuellar; her husband of 61 years, Manuel H Quintero; her daughters, Sandra and Sylvia Quintero; and her honorary daughter, Dr Mariela Rodriguez Carrasquillo; in addition to numerous cousins, nephews, nieces, additional family and friends.

The family expresses profound thanks and gratitude to Silverado Austin Hospice and the truly caring and compassionate care they showed to our loved one in her final days, most notably Mandy Estrada, her RN Case Manager. The family also thanks Father Jayme Mathias and Father Roy Gomez of Holy Family ACC for their prayers and visits.

Family and friends are invited to attend a Rosary at 7 PM on January 8, 2026 (Thursday) at Cook-Walden Pflugerville. Visitation with the family will begin at 6 PM. They are also invited to a Memorial Mass at 10 AM on January 9, 2026 (Friday) at Cook-Walden Pflugerville which will be followed by her interment.

In lieu of flowers, please consider making a donation in her honor to your local PBS station or the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, https://www.wildflower.org/donate.

A visitation will be held at Cook-Walden/Capital Parks Funeral Home, located at 14501 North Interstate 35, Pflugerville, Texas, 78660, on January 8, 2026, from 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm. A rosary will also take place at the same venue on January 8, 2026, at 7:00 pm.

A memorial mass is scheduled for January 9, 2026, at 10:00 am, also at Cook-Walden/Capital Parks Funeral Home, 14501 North Interstate 35, Pflugerville, Texas, 78660.