Helena Mencl

Helena Mencl passed away peacefully on May 5, 2019, age 91, at home after a long and fulfilling life.Dearly beloved wife of Jaroslav Mencl. Loving mother of Francis Mencl (Monika) and Marcela Amaya (Pedro). Cherished grandmother of six. (Peter, Paul, Andrew, Maria, Sylvia and Heidi).

Orphaned at a young age, she never knew her father.  Growing up in a small town in the Czech-Moravian highlands she was witness to the Germans and then Russians during World War II.  After the war she fled the rise of communism, barely getting out before the Iron Curtain came crashing down.  Coming to North America she was forced to learn English and after helping put her husband through school while raising us, she went on to college and earned a degree in English herself.  This she later put to good use teaching English to young girls in North Africa and later again as a freelance interpreter for the State Department after retiring from her secretarial job at Case.  She was a good mom, and grandmother, imperfect at times perhaps, but just simply struggling to do the best she knew how.  One thing for sure, no one ever went hungry at her table or in her house.  She will be missed.  For those of you who knew her, in lieu of flowers and cards simply remember her in your heart, in your prayers, and on your lips.  And for all a reminder to cherish those we love while we still can. 

Private Service