She was the beloved daughter of Ukrainian immigrants Anna and Thomas Hoda, and cherished younger
sister of Olga Hoda Bleakley. Her father worked as a gardener on the Bruce estate, now a Town of
Oyster Bay golf course. Her mother, a housewife, learned English from her daughters and by watching
daytime soap operas.
Helen excelled at school and was the first in her family to go to college. She attended Adelphi University
and graduated with a BS in Chemistry with high honors in 1947. She briefly worked for Colgate,
commuting from Syosset to Jersey City, New Jersey by train, a two-hour process that began with her
walk to the Syosset train station early each morning. The bulk of her career was spent at Endo
Laboratories (a division of DuPont Pharmaceuticals) in Garden City where she was a research chemist,
reverse engineering competitor’s products in the laboratory. Helen was a proud member of the
American Chemical Society and in 2019 was recognized for 70 years of membership.
When DuPont decided to relocate the Endo employees to Delaware in the 1980’s, Helen decided to take
an early retirement from the laboratory to remain near her sister, Olga, brother-in-law George, and her
only niece, Karen.
Never one to sit idle, Helen embarked on a second career as an interior designer, working at Lyons
Furniture, and purchasing, furnishing, and decorating her “getaway” house in Jamesport, New York
where she spent many long weekends with family and close friends.
Helen played tennis and golf on company teams when she was younger, and she remained an avid
golfer into her eighties. She and her lifelong best friend Rusty spent countless hours on the golf course
together, as well as vacations and excursions into New York City to see a ballet or a Broadway play.
Even more than golf, Helen loved baseball—the New York Yankees specifically. She was a lifelong
Yankees fan, and had the privilege of seeing Lou Gehrig, Joe DiMaggio and other greats play at the old
Yankees stadium. Her all-time favorite player was Derek Jeter, however, and she proudly wore her Jeter
jersey for luck when watching games at home and even when attending a Yankees game for her 90 th
birthday, this time at the new Yankees stadium.
Helen was a surrogate parent to her niece, Karen, and a wonderful aunt to her great nieces, Alexandra,
and Quinn. She was known affectionately as Auntie to many of their friends.
She will be remembered for her brilliant intellect, her lifelong curiosity about the world, the wide variety
of talents she possessed, and her sense of fun.
Donations in her memory may be made to the New York Local Section of the American Chemical Society
c/o Dept of Chemistry, St John's University, 8000 Utopia Ave New York, NY 11439.
Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.beney-fh.com for the Hoda family.
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