Helen R. Sheahan, 91, passed away peacefully with her children by her side in her California home Monday, June 20, 2022.
Helen was born Helena Rita Avila on December 9, 1930, in Lowell, Massachusetts, the daughter of John and Eugenia (Jennie) Avila. She married Lawrence R. “Larry” Sheahan, native of Kingman, Kansas on June 17, 1956. Survivors include daughter Brenda “Bernie” Sheahan and son Jerome “Jerry” Sheahan, and dozens of beloved nieces and nephews.
Helen was a longtime member of Ascension Catholic Church in Saratoga, Calif., the Santa Clara Woman’s Club, and Sister Cities of Santa Clara. She was very proud of her Portuguese heritage but loved being “Irish By Marriage” and an honorary Kansan. She was preceded in death by her parents, her husband Lawrence and her brother John Avila.
She was a graduate of Salem Teacher’s College in Salem, Massachusetts, and, after raising her children, was a long-term substitute teacher in special education.
Funeral services will be 11:00 a.m. Saturday at St. Peter’s Church in Willowdale, with a rosary at 10:30 at St. Peter’s. Burial will be in the St. Peter’s Cemetery.