Helen J Tavelli

Helen Jeanette Tavelli peacefully passed away in Olympia, WA on 3/2/2012. She was born on 2/22/1918 in Pe Ell, WA to Jacob and Francis Papiez. There was a total of 10 children in the family including her twin brother Joseph. The family moved to Olympia in 1919 where they first lived on East Bay Drive then later moved to a home built by her father on Gull Harbor Road.

She graduated from Chimacum High School while living with her sister Rose. She held the lead role in the graduating class play and was nominated for Miss Washington, but declined.

Helen moved home to Olympia and attended nursing school at St. Peter Hospital. After graduating, she enlisted in the U.S. Navy as an officer during World War II and was based in Oakland, CA. During this time she made lifelong friends and met her husband Anthony Tavelli who she married in San Francisco on 8/4/1946. They moved back to Olympia where Anthony built their home on Gull Harbor Road and they raised their eight daughters there; she lived there from 1952-2008.

Her hobbies included gardening, sewing, cooking, reading, traveling and listening to music. She also enjoyed spending time at the family beach house. She was a wonderful mother whose greatest joy was her daughters. She loved to make all the birthdays and holidays special by decorating, baking and having parties at the house.

She was preceded in death by her husband in 1995 and her daughter Terri Townsend in 2006. Her surviving daughters are Suzanne Henscheid, Mary Tavelli, Micky Albert, Debby Barnett, Angie Townzen, Anita Tavelli and Lisa Ishler. She has 10 grandchildren, Corina Burger, Margot Albert, Daniel Barnett, Chris Barnett, Travis Collins, Cameron Collins, Michael Dietz, Megan Dietz, Jamie Beasley and Brad Ishler and 3 great-grandchildren, Gabriel Burger, Mirabel Burger and Jack Beasley.

Services will be held at St. Michael Catholic Church on Friday 3/9/2012. Viewing starts at 11:00am, rosary at 11:15am and funeral at noon with a reception following.