Helen Mitchell Carpenter

Helen Mitchell Carpenter March 4, 1926 - February 21, 2010 Helen Mitchell Carpenter of Waco, Texas, passed away on Sunday, February 21, 2010, in Lewes, Delaware. Funeral services will be 11:00 a.m., Wednesday, March 3, at Chalk Bluff Baptist Church, Chalk Bluff, TX. Interment will follow at Moore Cemetery. Visitation will be 6 8 p.m., Tuesday, March 2, at Wilkirson-Hatch-Bailey Funeral Home in Waco. Born in Corsicana, TX, on March 4, 1926, Mrs. Carpenter was the daughter of John Mitchell and Ruth McBride Mitchell. Though she attended school in Corsicana, Mrs. Carpenter spent a large part of her childhood outside of Waco in Chalk Bluff, with her mother's family, the Mc Brides. She married Colonel Rufus Lee Carpenter, Jr., of Chalk Bluff in 1944. Mrs. Carpenter moved with her husband, who worked with the Veterans' Administration, to Dallas and then Denver, CO. Their final transfer was to Washington, DC, where Mrs. Carpenter was the Executive Secretary for the Commanding General of the Army Institute of Research at Walter Reed Army Medical Center. Retiring in 1977, the Carpenters returned to Waco. She and her husband were active members of Chalk Bluff Baptist Church. An avid golfer, Mrs. Carpenter was a member of Lake Shore Country Club for many years. She enjoyed having her grandchildren visit during summers. She was also a loving caregiver to her uncle, Robert McBride of Chalk Bluff. Mrs. Carpenter was predeceased by her husband of 64 years. She is survived by her sons, John Lee Carpenter of San Francisco, and James Rufus and his wife, Patricia, of Lewes, DE; six grandchildren, Andrew Carpenter and his wife, Nerina, of Belmont, CA; Lauren Lee and her husband, David, of San Rafael, CA, and James, Joseph, Elizabeth, and Laura Carpenter of Lewes, DE; two great-grandchildren, Callum and Aidan Carpenter of Belmont, CA; and numerous nephews and nieces. The family invites you to leave a message or memory in our "Memorial Guestbook" at www.wilkirsonhatchbailey.com Wilkirson-Hatch-Bailey