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Generation 3
4. Helen Marie Sharpe (Married: Russell Leach (#3) , 17 February 1945 at Greensboro, N.C.) [Note: Helen did not like her middle name, and only used it when necessary.]
Born: 13 March 1922 of Terry Donnell Sharpe (#7) & Mary Gertrude Colerider (#8) at her parent's home at 687 Percy Street, Greensboro, N.C.
Click on the image to go to (#7) and (#8).
Died: 20 August 2010 of heart failure at 88 years old. Buried with her husband at Union Cemetery, Sec. 10, Lot 185. During her life, Helen suffered from Sjogren's Syndrome, rheumatoid arthritis, and high blood pressure. Near the end of her life, she also had aortic strenuous, congestive heart failure, and COPD.
[Her siblings included:
a) Gladys Lucile Sharpe: (Married: Oren Long, 2 June 1934); Born: 10 October 1911; Died: 2 April 2001, buried at Greenlawn Memorial Park Cemetery in Columbia, South Carolina beside her husband.
b) Alma Elizabeth Sharpe ("Amie"): (Married: Spencer Ralph Garlow, 17 December 1953.) Born: 30 December 1913 in Greensboro, North Carolina. Died: October 1989 (Find a Grave says 9 November 1988 in Greensboro, buried at New Gardens Friends Cemetery in Greensboro, North Carolina; Her tombstone shown at Find A Grave says "1913-1988"; [Note: Alma was to have had a knee replacement operation, tested low in iron prior to the operation, received an iron shot, went into anaphylactic shock and died at the age of 74.)
c) Evelyn Terry Sharpe: (Married: Dr. John Reed Bumgarner, August 1948); Born: 13 February 1916; Died: 2009 (Obituary recorded 22 October 2009; Find-A-Grave says 20 October 2009) Buried: Guilford Memorial Park Cemetery in Greensboro, North Carolina beside her husband.]
Memories: [When Helen was ~86 years of age, she was interviewed by her daughter Susan about her memories from her early life. The following in black italics are Helen's recollections. The photographs were found among her possessions. Other information (in blue) was learned by Susan over the years from and about her mother, or it is used for clarification for the reader.]
I was born on Percy Street, the last of four children. Back then it wasn’t proper to discuss pregnancy, but my sisters knew Mother was pregnant. One day they couldn’t come home from school for lunch (ie: they were told not to come home for lunch). They found out after lunch at school from a friend, who had gone home for lunch, that they had a little sister.
Below: These pages were copied from Helen's baby book. The Announcement page states: Born at 687 Percy St, Greensboro, N. C; Time 11:15 Monday a.m. Signatures: Father Terry D. Sharpe, Mother Mary Gertrude Sharpe, Physician Dr. Edmund Harris, Nurse Nora Slade. The second page states Baby's First Weight 7 1/4; Date March 13, 1922; One month:- 8 lbs; Two months - 10 lbs; Three- 12 1/4; Four - 13 lbs.; Five months-15 lbs; Eleven months - 21 lbs.
Below: Baby Helen. At Right: Helen is being held by her mother.
Below: Baby Helen.
Below: Very young Helen in her father's lily field, and a bib she wore that was handmade by her mother, Gertrude.
Below: First Photograph: Baby Helen in the lily field with some of her family. Left to right: Jules Sharpe (Helen's grandfather), Evelyn and Lucile (sisters sitting), Alma (sister standing), baby Helen held by her father, Terry Sharpe. This photograph was likely taken by Helen's mother Gertrude. Second Photograph: Front Row: Alma, Helen, Lucile. Back Row: Jules, Evelyn, Gertrude. This photograph was likely taken by Terry and some of the family wasn't ready for the picture to be taken.
Below: Helen about 3-4 months of age.
Below: Baby Helen being held by her oldest sister, Lucile. At left in the photograph is sister Alma. At right in the photograph is sister Evelyn.
Below: Young Helen.
Below: Helen loved kittens. She is petting one above and holding one in the next three pictures.
Below: Helen at left " with kitten" and some of her little friends.
Below: Helen at about age 4.
The house on Percy Street had a basement with a dirt floor. Father thought it was healthy to sleep on the sleeping porch during all seasons. Three of the walls on the sleeping porch were glass windows that could be opened up. During a thunderstorm, Mother would take us girls to the
livingroom couch to wait out the storm.
At right: the Percy Street home where Helen was born. Below: Helen revisited the home to pose on the sidewalk steps. This photo was circa 2006. Helen was ~84 years old.
The house had a front porch. When it would rain, I and all my little friends would turn Mother’s rocking chairs upside down, cover them with blankets, and pretend they were houses. I loved walking down streets during the rain with an umbrella.
Helen attended Spring Street School and Curry Elementary in Greensboro, North Carolina. Curry School was an integral part of the School of Education of the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. It was the demonstration school for the University. It is unknown when Helen began at Curry, but she finished high school there.
We girls had a play house. I remember climbing a nearby apricot tree and eating apricots.
Mr. Applewhite, a next door neighbor, made doll furniture (a chair and bed) for me when I was about five years of age.
Below: Some of Helen's doll furniture, several of her dolls, a toy piano, and bear bookends.
Below: Helen and her mother, Gertrude.
One year, the family went to Wrightsville Beach for a vacation. All but Mother and I were caught in an undertow. It frightened Mother so much that the family never went back to the beach. Instead, we went to the mountains and stayed in various tourist homes. These were like bed and breakfast homes today.
Below: Photograph 1: With her sister, Evelyn, and father, Terry, young Helen posed for a picture at the beach. Photograph 2: Another picture taken at the beach. Helen is the young girl being held on her arms by her mother, Gertrude. Sister Lucile is the young lady to the right of Gertrude and sister Alma may be the girl in the water with the flowered hat next to Helen. Evelyn may be the girl in the water next to Alma with the black suit with the white belt.
Below: Gertrude made Helen’s dress and hat and decorated Helen’s tricycle for a parade.
In 1927, my family moved to 1204 West Market Street. The house cost $15,000. I was six years old at the time. Mother let me plant a garden behind the garage. Mother and a neighbor lady gave me plants. I also collected wildflowers from a nearby woods to plant.
Below: 1204 West Market Street, the front and side of the house.
Daddy told me and the rest of the family to turn off all lights when they were out of the room to conserve energy. He also saved string. Mother rented out one room at West Market Street to get extra money. She got $50.00 a month for the room. At the time, I and my sister, Evelyn, shared a room. Lucille and Alma (Helen's other sisters) and my parents had their own rooms. Bob Farmer was one of the tenants in the room that was rented. He introduced Oren Long to Lucile. They later married. At the time, a movie cost 10 cents and a coke was 5 cents.
Below: Christmas card from the Sharpes.
When Helen was growing up, she kept scrapbooks of pictures of Shirley Temple, seasonal cards, and colorful magazine illustrations. Below are some of her collection pages.
Two years later (1929) was the depression. I lost money in the bank. I did get change back as the banks started paying off what they owed. I remember that Mother fed men when they came to the door begging for food. She had them go to the back door to come into the house and sit at the kitchen table to eat.
Below: Helen is promoted from the Primary Department of Grace Methodist Sunday School to the Junior Department on October 5th, 1930.
Below: On the left is a picture that was made and given by Helen to her mother for Christmas in 1931. On the right is one she made and gave to her daddy on the same day. She was in the fourth grade at Spring Street School when she made these pictures. Miss Keith was her teacher.
I remember an especially heavy snow and I had to walk to Spring Street School. I walked in Daddy's foot steps.
I played Martha Washington in a play at Spring Street School. My wig was cotton over a stocking.
On my way home from school, I walked railroad tracks part of the way, and sometimes I would climb a tree in front of a friend’s house. I also walked across a pipe across a creek, and sometimes fell in.
In the attic of our house, I set up a school with a blackboard. Some of our young neighbors came in and I played the teacher. I also had a museum in the attic of quartz that I’d collected at Aunt Nelly’s farm field. Also in the attic, I and my friends would dress up in my older sisters’ high heel shoes, hats, jewelry, dresses, gloves, and purses, and parade up and down the sidewalk.
I loved roller skating. I’d go up and down the huge hill in front of my house.
Below: Left: Helen liked to play with her cousin, Roger. Right: Helen strokes one of her cats, Puff.
On Sunday, we would visit Grandpa Sharpe on Sharpe Road in Greensboro. He would always save me the little bantam chicken eggs. He would also go to the cellar and get a watermelon to cut for the family. He took watermelon and cantaloupe to market.
Below: Helen poses with her sisters: Top row left to right: Alma and Lucile; Bottom row left to right: Helen and Evelyn.
When I visited Grandfather (Colerider) in Fayetteville, I remember going to the outhouse. The brick walk to the outhouse was bordered with beautiful blooming crepe myrtle. A porch wrapped around the house, both up and down. There was always water in a carafe with a glass in the dining room. (Helen sometimes had a stomach ache when she visited Grandmother Colerider. Her grandmother would give her sassafras tea.)
Mother thought it was a nice experience at Easter to wake up us girls, and take us to the Moravian Church in Winston Salem for the Easter Sunrise service. The service was performed outside on a hill.
When the family got together at Thanksgiving and Christmas we had a big dinner. The adults ate first, the children next. I remember the following things about my aunts and uncles: Grandpa Sharpe sent his sons Ernest and Daddy to college, but Ernest dropped out. Daddy would work in the summers to pay tuition for college. All of Daddy's brothers and sisters except Kate were farmers. Kate worked in town. I remember that Daddy wrote all of his siblings' wills. Aunt Nellie made dandelion wine and scuppernang wine. Aunt Edna was the first corpse that I saw. I thought she looked like a wax figure ...beautiful. At that time, dead people were put in the parlor. I remember that Aunt Lucy took her false teeth out. Uncle Bob cured tobacco and he grew good cantaloupes and watermelons. Aunt Gertie made cakes for the fair and won all kinds of ribbons.(She also made baskets from grape vines.) After Grandpa Sharpe died, the family would go to Great Uncle John’s house. Since he was deaf, he put a horn up to his ear to hear. He would pop peanuts and popcorn together in a popper over an open fire. He drove a horse and buggy downtown.
All the Sharpe sisters took piano lessons. Amie (Alma) also played trumpet and Evelyn played cello. I took one year of piano, but I never learned to read music. I learned to play by ear. I also learned to play the violin by ear. I decided I didn’t like playing instruments, so I convinced Mother that I would like to take tap dancing lessons. In one recital, I and other girls blackened our faces and danced to the music of “Little Liza Jane.” In another recital, I was a gypsy. Mother made the costume. Later I wore the costume for Halloween.
Below: The May 23, 1931 program for the Greensboro College School of Music lists Helen's first music recital on piano. The duet she played with her teacher (Miss Ruth Huffman) was "Evening Bells. " Her solo as a first year pupil was "The Forest Brook" by Rolf. She would have been 9 years old.
Below: The 1932 program cover and the listing of acts from the dance recital in which Helen was a gypsy. Note: her name is indicated with the black arrow. She would have been 10 years old at the time.
In the 6th grade, I was in an operetta at Curry High School.
When Lucile got married, I, age 11, was not asked to be in the wedding, as the other sisters had been. I was pretty upset. A next door neighbor, Mrs. Sykes, who owned a florist, made me a nose gay. I walked down the aisle before the bridesmaids with my flowers, thinking I was pretty special.
Below: Cross-stitch pictures Helen created in 1934. She was 12 years old at the time.
When I was 12 years old, I was a member of the Girl Scouts.
Below: Left: Helen is standing in the front row with some Girl Scout friends.
Below: Helen in her Girl Scout uniform. The photo at right shows her in her camping uniform. Her troop used Lake Junaluska in Waynesville, North Carolina for camping.
Below: Helen's Girl Scout Uniform , complete with badges, scarf, and belt. Also shown are her book of Girl Scout Proficiency Badge Requirements and Special Awards Book dated 1934, fingernail file holder, Small Girl Scout Address and Phone book, Girl Scout Handbook, and hat.
Below: Helen's official Girl Scout Camera, Pocket Knife, and Membership Card.
Below: A tray woven from pine needles by Helen, probably at Girl Scout Camp.
Below: Girl Scout Camp pamphlet dated 1935.
Below: Helen was in Girl Scout Troop 9. Highlighted below in red, Helen's name appeared throughout this news article.
Below: Helen was one of the senior scouts present for this special tea for the Girl Scout troop.
Below: Helen (indicated by the red arrow) was one of the Girl Scouts shown in this newspaper article, distributing "extras", which told the story that the Girl Scouts of the county made a 62 percent gain in total registration of 1,041.
Below: The Spring Festival of 1938, was yet another activity Helen had in the Girl Scouts.
Below: This 1938 article shows Helen (just left of center in the front row) was one of the Girl Scouts entertaining the national dramatics director.
Below: Helen as a young teen. At right she is standing to with of one of her best friends, Francis Rhyne, and her first cousin Roger.
Below: Helen is a teenager.
One day, I, my sisters, and Daddy were sitting on the porch (her mother was not home at the time). My daddy noticed a very strange cloud in the sky and said we should all go inside the house. Once inside, I and the others watched from a window as a funnel cloud dipped to the earth and picked up debris about six blocks away. Later, Daddy found out they had witnessed a tornado. (Helen was 14 years old at the time.)
Below are images found in Helen's possessions after she died. They appear to be photos of damage from the tornado that hit Greensboro. According to Wikipedia, there was an F4 tornado that touched down on the evening of April 2, 1936, passing through the south side of downtown. The storm began its path near High Point Road at Elam Street and continued east along Lee Street to east of Bennett College.
In high school, (Curry High School in Greensboro, North Carolina.) I would hurry back from home after lunch to dance with my friends to the nickelodeon in the school gym. Everyone knew how to dance. I ran in races at school and played field hockey after school. The dances in High School were held at the Country Club. I was a maid in the Senior Play. My graduating class had a house party at a cottage at Myrtle Beach for a long weekend. A teacher and two parents were chaperones. I and my friends had early dates and late dates at the house party. We bummed rides to get up and down the beach.
Left: Helen in high school.
Below: Helen and her friends on the trip to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. She is pictured at far right.
When I was about 15, Mother took me to a fortune teller who read tea leaves. She told me that I would marry someone with the first initial of R. At the time, I was not dating anyone with that initial. (In 1945, Helen married Russell Leach.) The fortune teller also told me that I would always have problems with the left side of my body. In 2005, I was diagnosed with blockage of my left carotid artery and underwent surgery to prevent a stroke.
When I was 16, the family moved from West Market Street to the country. Daddy, had inherited the farm (from his father.)
Left: The country farm house on the road that Terry would name Sharpe Road.
I didn’t want to live at the farm. Daddy built a dam and dug out a lake that was filled by a spring so that I would have a place to swim. Daddy raised strawberries the size of golf balls. His strawberries were described in the newspaper. The end of the bus line was quite a distance away from the country home. I walked this distance many times while living out in the country.(Helen graduated with her small class in 1939. Her high school had 11 grades.)
I remember that Daddy borrowed on his insurance to send Lucile, Alma, and Evelyn to college. Daddy was furnished a car from Southern Real Estate. It was Mother who bought their first car.
Below: Helen dancing with a friend... unknown year.
Below: Helen (2nd from right) and her sister Evelyn (far right) enjoyed being with their friends. Of all the sisters in her family, Helen and Evelyn looked most alike. Evelyn was 6 years older than Helen.
Below: Helen at far right with Evelyn next to her.
Below: While in high school, Helen was elected to be a council representative of the Curry Girl Reserves. This article was obtained from a high school scrapbook that Helen kept. The Curry Girl Reserve group was affiliated with the Y.W.C.A. The note under the article was written by Helen.
Below: The red arrow points to Helen, a member of a cabinet of one of the five high school girl reserve clubs which the Y.W.C.A maintained..
Below Left: The cover of the program for the Junior Senior ball '38. Following that image are some of the inside pages of the program. Helen loved the social activities at her high school.
Below: Two news paper articles about the 1938 Junior-Senior Ball.
Below: In 1939, Helen entered a "color contest" with the Greensboro Daily News and won one of the 14 awarded prizes. She received $1.00. Coincidently, her oldest daughter and son also entered coloring contests at Christmas when they were young and each won $1.00.
Image 1 Below: The cover for Helen's grade card for the second semester of her senior year. Image 2: Helen's semester record.
There were 27 students in Helen's graduating class from Curry High School.
Below: Helen's high school diploma.
In college (Woman's College of the University of North Carolina, Greensboro 1939-41), there were four societies. Each girl was put in one. I was a Cornelian. The Cornelians had formal card dances.[The 1941 Woman's College University of North Carolina yearbook, The Pine Needles, shows Helen was a sophomore and a member of the college choir. Many of her friends had written notes in the yearbook indicating that she was a good friend, had also attended Woman's College her freshman year, but might not be attending as a junior. Her photograph in the yearbook is at left. The picture appeared on page 128.]
Below: The outside of the formal dance card for the annual ball of the 1941 Sophomore Class of Women's College. Below the cover are the inside pages.
Below left: is the outside of the formal dance card for the annual ball of the 1943 Junior Class of Women's College. The images that follow the cover are the inside pages.
The 1943 yearbook, The Coronet, from Queens College in Charlotte, North Carolina, shows that in the 1942/43 school year, Helen is a member of the junior class. She was in the Queens Choral Club. (The photograph at right was on page 42 of the yearbook and the photograph below was on page 70.]
Below: The Queens College Coral Club. The red arrow points to Helen in the front row.
At right: This photograph was likely taken of Helen when she was in college. It was found among her possessions after she died.
I studied in the library every night. My roommate had a girl friend in the room all the time, so I couldn’t study there. At the drug store, a coke was 5 cents. I went to the movies every Saturday. Calls came in and I picked which date I wanted to go with.
It was a Sunday afternoon (December 7, 1941) and I was at college in a friend’s room when I heard the announcement on the radio that Pearl Harbor had been bombed and that the United States was at war. My first thought was that all the boys would have to go to war. (Helen was 19 years old at the time and would become 20 in 3 months.)
Below: Helen (far left) with her sisters Evelyn, Alma, and Lucile.
Below: Helen was probably about 20 years old in these photographs.
Throughout Helen's life, she loved art. In college, she majored in art education. Charcoal drawings and other artwork, many of which she produced as class assignments, are shown below:
Below: Helen made curtains with her own original Ole King Cole block-print design.
Below: Helen’s drawing of landscape was published in the Woman’s College of the University of North Carolina, Greensboro, North Carolina student publication, CORADDI (Volume 45 Winter 1940-41 #2).
Helen had difficulties with memorization in Art History and had to give up her art education major. She ended up taking business courses (typing, shorthand, etc].
Around 1942, ration stamps were distributed to families. Sugar, shoes, and gasoline were rationed. Daddy gave me his shoe stamps because I loved shoes. I lived with Lucile in Charlotte and babysat Sandra and Mary Lue (nieces), while I was attending Queens College. Mother gave Lucile $50.00 a month for my room and board.
Below: One of Helen's ration books. The back of the book is at left and the front of the book is at right. Some of her unused stamps are below.
Helen met Russell Leach on a blind date in the summer of 1942. Otto Schenk, a good friend Russell had known many years in Columbus, Ohio, called from Greensboro, North Carolina where Otto was living with his parents (who had moved from Columbus to Greensboro). Otto invited Russell to visit him, and Otto promised that he could fix Russell up with a different date every night for a week. The second night, he met Helen Sharpe. Russell told Otto to stop fixing him up. He liked Helen. He stayed in Greensboro two weeks instead of one week and returned home (to quote Russell) “flat broke.” Incidentally, Otto had been dating a very good friend of Helen in Greensboro (Betty Hornaday) and that is how Otto knew Helen.
Double click on the cassette below to hear Russell’s story in his own words of how he met and began dating Helen. (Susan, Russell’s daughter, interviewed him and recorded his voice on a cassette tape in 2001. The tape was digitized on 7 September 2005.)
Helen graduated from Queens College with a Business Certificate on June 7, 1943. The cover of the program, 2 pages of the program, and back of the program are show below. Helen's name is highlighted in red on page 1.
After I met Russ, he wrote me every day..., about two years... until we were married. The first time he kissed me was at the bus station when we met Bob (Russ’ brother). (Helen was embarrassed.)
Photo at left: 1945
Below: When stationed on Saipan, Russell collected cowries and made this necklace and bracelet for Helen.
Evelyn and I lived together in an apartment when Russ was overseas. When John Bumgarner (Evelyn's boyfriend and later husband) came to visit Evelyn, she was too excited to cook, so I did the cooking.
I was a secretary at the main office at Burlington Mills in Greensboro, North Carolina 1943-45. While I worked there, I was given nylons at Christmas. (Helen was to be promoted to be the boss's secretary, but she was too nervous to take the job, so she ended up training a girl that got that job.)
Below: Helen is shown in the "Bur-Mil" Club paper, with her hands full of Christmas presents.
Below: Russell got an unexpected furlough from Ft. Benning, Ga. He went to Greensboro and proposed to Helen. The Greensboro paper published the news. Russ borrowed money from Dorothy (his sister) to buy my ring. Dorothy picked it out.
The newspapers below announced their immediate wedding in the papers:
Mother made persimmon pudding from the fruit growing on a tree in our yard. She also made scuppernong wine from grapes growing in the yard, but it was for "medicinal purposes only". The night before Russ and I got married, Evelyn, Russ, and I got in the pantry and had some of the wine.
Below: Helen and Russ' wedding announcement.
On their wedding day, February 17, 1945, the article below appeared in the Greensboro, North Carolina paper. It announces that on that morning, Mrs. Otto Schenk (formerly Betty Hornaday) will host a breakfast at her parents home for Helen and Russell. At 5:30 PM, the wedding will take place at Grace Methodist Church. The best man will be Otto Schenk. On the previous evening ~75 people were received at Julane (the home of the bride's parents).
At her wedding, Helen had whooping cough. She'd been quite sick the preceding days and had a cough drop in her mouth when the ceremony began. But, she handed her cough drop to Mr. McLarty, the minister, during the ceremony because she was afraid she was going to swallow it. He calmly placed the drop in his coat pocket and never let others know what had transpired.
At left: Helen in her wedding dress. Below: Terry Sharpe (Helen's father), Charles Leach (Helen's father-in-law), Gertrude Sharpe (Helen's mother), and Hazel Leach (Helen's mother-in-law) on Russell and Helen's wedding day, February 17, 1945.
Below Left: Helen's wedding dress, stored and photographed at Susan's home in 2021. Right: Helen and Russell. This was the engagement photo used in the newspaper article above.
Below: An announcement appeared in the Greensboro paper: "MRS. LEACH, married February 17 at Grace Methodist church is the former Helen Sharpe, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Terry Donnell Sharpe, of Sharpe road. Private Leach, stationed by the army at Ft. Benning, Ga, where his bride is with him, is a son of Judge and Mrs. Charles A. Leach. Columbus, Ohio.
I sold war bonds for a few months at a bank in Columbus, Georgia in 1945 when Russell was stationed there, and worked with payroll at the Depot in Greensboro 1945 while Russell was overseas serving in the army.
Below: This document was found among Helen's possessions after her death. It states that she was working at HQ., AAF ORD, in Greensboro. She was purchasing a $25 War Bond from her pay at the rate of $7.50 each pay day beginning in August 1945. It lists her as single, but she would have been married. The co-owner of the bond was her mother, Gertrude.
Below: The document shows that Helen is an Employee of the War Department. Her salary earned was $65.53; overtime was $19.67; gross earnings $85.20; Federal Tax $9.30; C.S. Retirement $3.28; Bonds Deduction $7.50; Total Deductions $10.06; Net Pay $65.12. The pay period is not shown. This document shows at the bottom: "Remarks Bond eff 8/11/45, 7.50 per pay."
When Russell was discharged from the army, he returned to Columbus with Helen and they lived with his parents at 2321 Bexley Park Road in Bexley, Ohio (a suburb of Columbus, Ohio).
Below: Helen stands next to Marie Leach, her sister-in-law. The Bexley Park house is out of the photograph to the right.
Not too long after Helen and Russ moved in with Russell's parents, Helen's first child, a girl (Susan), was born [1946], Helen and Russ moved to the Fairport Apartments in Columbus. In 1949, their second child, a boy (Terry), was born.
Below Left : Helen with Susan. Below Right: Summer of 1947.
When Susan was quite young, Russell taped Helen and Susan reciting the "Three Little Kittens". To hear this recording turn up your volume and click on the record below. In the recording, Susan calls herself "Tuti".
When Helen gave birth to Terry, she took nearly three-year old Susan to live with her mother for three months because Terry was ill. When Russ and Helen went to Greensboro to retrieve her, Susan insisted that Helen wasn’t her mommy, Mamma Sharpe was.
Below: Helen with her two older children, Terry and Susan.
Below: Helen with her two oldest children (Terry and Susan) and her parents, Gertrude and Terry.
Helen, Russ, and the kids remained at Fairport until Russell was called to active duty in the Ohio National Guard. He was sent to Leesville, Louisiana. Later Helen and the kids went there by train. They rented a small house in a community of other military families.
Below Left: Helen's military ID for the base indicates that the family is living at 1308 Kings Road, Leesville, Louisiana. Right: Trip to the Gulf of Mexico, 1952.
Helen sang in the choir at the base while the family was living in Leesville.
Below: Helen's Louisiana Drivers License. She was 5'2" and weighed 112, had brown eyes and brown hair.
Below: This image appears to be one of Helen in a style show. It is unknown when this photograph was taken. It may or may not have been when Russell and Helen were living in Louisiana.
Helen and her family returned to Columbus after Russ was discharged. When coming home from Louisiana [by car], we stopped at night somewhere along the way. I woke up at night to check on Susan and Terry and roaches were crawling on everything. I said I couldn’t sleep there and Russ was furious. We got up, packed the car, and Russ left money on top of the refrigerator.
The family rented an apartment on Eastmoreland Drive for a few years and eventually purchased a new home at 923 Enfield Road. Both of these locations were in east Columbus. The Enfield home is shown at right.
Below: These unlimited privilege cards were found among Helen's things after she died. They are privilege cards at the Columbus General Depot Exchange and the Lockbourne Air Force Base Exchange. It is not known why she had these cards.
Below: Helen and her mother, Gertrude.
After Helen's father died (1957), Helen and her family, Evelyn and her family, and Gertrude (her mother) went on a vacation together to Fontana Village in the Smokey Mountains. Everyone had a great time and it gave Helen time to be with some of her family. Helen was homesick for much of her adult life, living so far from her mother and sisters. All of them lived no less than 500 miles away in North and South Carolina.
Russell and Helen took Susan and Terry to many historic places as they were growing up, including Greenfield Village, Williamsburg, Washington D.C., Shaker Village of Pleasant Hill, and Monticello. They also made trips to places to look at nature: Mammoth Cave, Flint Ridge (Ohio), Ohio Caverns, Olentangy Caverns (Ohio), Lake Hope in Ohio,and the Hocking Hills (Ohio). Several times, the kids were taken ruby mining in Franklin, North Carolina. Helen had just as much fun as the kids in finding raw rubies.
Left: Helen with her children, standing in front of Monticello, Thomas Jefferson’s Home.
Below: The family is mining for rubies. (Both photos were taken by Russell.)
During this time, Russell was working for the City Attorney's office in Columbus, Ohio, was elected City Attorney in 1957, and later, re-elected. Helen had become a politician's wife.
Below: Christmas 1958. Helen made Christmas skirts for herself and Susan, and stockings for Terry and Susan.
Below: Helen posed with her sisters and mother August 1958. Left to right: Helen, Evelyn, Gertrude, Alma, and Lucile.
Below: Russell and Helen 1960. The election was over and Russell had been reelected for a second term as City Attorney of Columbus, Ohio
.
Helen's mother, to whom she was very close, died on May 16, 1962. Below, the June 8, 1962 Bexley Methodist Courier included her memory in the "Bexley Beat" section of its program, "Loving concern and prayers for a sense of the Divine Presence go to Mrs. Russell Leach in the death of her mother, Mrs. Terry D. Sharpe, May 16 in Greensboro, North Carolina". (See the yellow highlighted area of the program below.)
After Helen’s mother's death, Helen, Evelyn, Lucile and their families met at Pauley’s Island, Edisto Beach, or Myrtle Beach several different summers for a week at the beach together.
Below: At Edisto Beach. 1st Row: Lyn and Reed Bumgarner (Helen's niece and nephew), 2nd Row: Oren Long (Helen's brother-in-law), Terry Leach, Dr. John Bumgarner (Helen's brother-in-law), 3rd Row: Susan Leach, Evelyn Bumgarner, 4th Row: Lucile Long, Helen Leach. (The photograph was taken by Russell.)
In 1963, there was a surprise ... another girl was born to Helen and Russ. The house on Enfield was too small, so the family bought a new house on Severn Rd. in Berwick, another Columbus east-end community.
Below: Helen with baby Ann and Helen's niece Sandra with her three daughters .
After Helen's mother's death, Helen and her sisters continued to rent out some of the small office buildings that her mother had owned. But, they eventually decided to sell them. The sisters thought about fixing up the farm house and renting it out, but instead decided to sell it too. On April 3, 1964, the sale of the Sharpe farm was final. Evelyn Bumgarner (Helen's sister) had handled the estate's affairs. The farm sold for $75,000. But with fees, Helen and her three sisters ended up with $66,082.82. Each sister got $16,520.70. Helen used her money to pay back $6000 to Dorothy (her sister-in-law) for a loan she'd given Helen and Russ for their house, and to buy some AT and T stock, carpet for the house, and a mink stole. She put the rest in the bank.
Below: Edisto Beach 1966: Row 1: Ann Leach; Row 2: Terry Leach, Helen, Lyn Bumgarner, Reed Bumgarner. Row 3: Lucile Long, and Evelyn Bumgarner. Row 4: Unknown Child (Perhaps Bill Hampton... Lucile and Oren's grandson), Oren Long. (The photograph was taken by Russell.)
Below Left to Right: Helen with sisters Evelyn, Alma, and Lucile.
In fall of 1968, Helen's oldest daughter went to Oahu, Hawaii to attend graduate school at the University of Hawaii. The following Christmas, Helen and the rest of the family went to Hawaii for Christmas.
Below: Terry, Helen, Russell, and Ann visited for Christmas, 1969.
Below: Helen and youngest daughter, Ann, on Ann’s 6th birthday (1969) .[Note Ann never knew any of her grandparents. All had died before her birth.]
Below: Helen, two sisters and some of their family. Bottom row left to right: daughter Susan, niece Lyn Bumgarner, great nephew Craig Hampton, daughter Ann, great nephew Bill Hampton. Top row left to right: sister Lucile Long, Helen, niece Mary Lue Hampton, sister Evelyn Bumgarner, brother-in-law Oren Long.
Below: Helen posed with sister, Evelyn.
In 1969, Russell and Helen bought a cottage at 3139 Cottonwood Court, Millersport, Ohio 43046 on Liebs Island for $12,000 at Buckeye Lake. The cottage came with a boat dock. Russell bought a boat and Terry enjoyed water skiing on the weekends and summers, while Helen enjoyed gardening, Ann playing, and Russ and Terry fishing. Susan was away at college. Russ and Helen made improvements to the cottage and eventually bought another lot in back of and adjacent to the property.
Below: The Liebs Island house and Helen, Russell, and Ann.
Below: The year this photograph was taken of Helen with her sisters is unknown, but it was probably in the 1970s. Sitting: Lucile; Standing: Helen, Alma, Evelyn.
I remember the beautiful inaugural balls of Nixon and Reagan that I and Russ attended. The ballroom was very crowded, and it was difficult to dance.
Below: Congressman Wylie and his wife were good friends of Helen and Russell, and they invited them to be their guests to attend the inauguration of Richard Nixon in 1969.
Below: Left: Helen’s bracelet from the 1969 Inaugural Ball of Richard Nixon. Right: Matches from Ronald Reagan’s 1981 Inauguration.
In 1974 when Ann was in the sixth grade, Helen and Russ moved from Berwick to Upper Arlington, Ohio, where they purchased a condominium at 1232 Kenbrook Hills Drive, shown below. Their home was just off Kenney Road, near the OSU golf course.
Helen and Russ lived in that home until Russell's death in 2002.
From 1974-1978, Russell was the Chairman of the Franklin County Republican Party.
Below: In early May 1976, Mrs. Betty Ford visited Columbus, hoping to raise money for her husband's Presidential campaign. Because Russell was the Franklin County GOP Chairman, Russell and Helen were among the dignitaries meeting Mrs. Ford upon arrival at the airport. The first article is from the Columbus Dispatch; the second is from the Citizen Journal.
The article below came from The President Ford Committee in Ohio May, 1976, President Ford '76 The Ohio Campaign News Pamphlet.
In 1978, the Franklin County Republican party roasted Russ.
In 1979, Helen and Russ were on a boat ride around the lake and saw another cottage for sale. It was on a beautiful point of land. They purchased 115 Oak Drive, Hebron, Ohio. The cottage was rather small, so they built an addition which included another bathroom, master bedroom, utility room, and screened in porch. They built a 2 car garage, remodeled the kitchen, and sided the addition.(Ironically, the ladies who sold the cottage to the Leaches were the sisters of a deceased man who had lived there, and all were 1st cousins of Russell's mother.) The cottage became a place to escape to on weekends and it became a place to celebrate special occasions: bridge club meetings, attorney office parties, Susan's wedding, and Helen and Russ' 50th anniversary party. The second photo was taken in 1980.
After purchasing the "new" cottage in 1979, in 1980, Helen and Russ rented the Liebs Island cottage to a couple. Eventually, the couple wanted to buy it, so a land contract agreement was drawn up on October 3, 1987. The contract amount was for $35,420.33. After many problems with the buyer not meeting their obligations in paying their monthly bills, and even declaring bankruptcy in 1995, the closing statement for the buyers purchase was finalized February 23, 1999, much to the relief of the Leaches.
For many years Helen and Russell took their family on Florida vacations. At least one time, before Ann was born, they went to Clearwater; several years they stayed on the East Coast at the Beach Club at Fort Lauderdale, but later they decided to try the southwest coast.
At first they rented , but then in the late 1970s they purchased Unit 306 in Vanderbilt Towers 2 on Bluebill Avenue at Vanderbilt Beach in North Naples. It was a 1 bedroom condo. Later, they purchased Unit 305 for $45,000, an efficiency apartment, to have more room for the family. When they were not using the condos, they rented them out.
Below: a brochure for Vanderbilt Towers II.
Helen organized many family portraits:
Below: Family Portrait at Helen’s & Russ' Kenbrook Hills Condo circa 1980: Seated: Polly Leach, Susan Leach, Baby Charlie Leach, Ann Leach, and Helen Leach. Standing: Terry Leach and Russell Leach.
Below: 1982 Good friends: Ginny Wilcox, Kathleen Warner, and Helen Leach
When her children were grown and gone from the home, Helen took a cruise with Susan and Polly (Terry’s wife) to the Caribbean. They boarded the ship in San Juan, Puerto Rico and visited St. Thomas, St. Martin, Antigua, Martinique, St. Lucia, and Barbados.
Below: Helen on her 1984 cruise with Susan and Polly.
Below: Helen, ship waiter, and Polly.
Below: Helen posed next to daughter Ann and daughter-in-law Polly at a shower for Ann's wedding in 1986.
Below: Helen attended several reunions of her 1939 high school graduating class. The photo below may be her 50th reunion held in 1989.
The photograph below was probably at an earlier class reunion. The significance of "Annie K's Ark Class of 39" on the shirts is not known by Helen's daughter, the webmaster, who found the photo after Helen's death.
In 1989, Helen and Russ purchased Unit 402 in Vanderbilt Surf Colony III at 17 Bluebill Ave., and continued to rent out the Vanderbilt Towers II condos. In 1990, they sold Unit 305 for $58,000.
Below: Helen with Lucile and Evelyn. At the time this photo was taken, Alma was deceased. She died in 1988
Sometime after 1988 when Alma died and before 2001 when Lucile died, the Sharpe family had a reunion in Greensboro. Most of the photographs below were taken by Russell.
Below: Helen and Russell.
Below: Helen and Lucile
Below: Helen and Helen's cousin Ed Sharpe
Below: The next two images are taken only a moment apart. In the first image, some weren't ready. The people are front row, left to right: Helen, Lucile, ?, ?, Back row left to right: Helen's Cousin Norman Sharpe, Norman's wife, and Helen's Cousin Ed Sharpe.
Below Left to right: Lucile, Helen, Ed Sharpe and his wife.
Below: Left to right: Norman Sharpe, Mary Lue Finch (Helen's niece), and Helen.
Below: Left to right: Randy ("Little" Sandra's husband), and "Little" Sandra (Helen's great niece and daughter of Sandra Henson), and Helen.
Below: Family Portrait at Helen’s & Russ' Kenbrook Hills Condo circa 1989: Front Row: Charlie and Carrie Leach. Middle Row: Polly Leach, Terry Leach, Susan Snyder, Jim Snyder. Back Row: Ann Samuelson, Brian Samuelson, Helen Leach, Russell Leach, Bethany Snyder, Christie Snyder.
Below: Family Portrait at Buckeye Lake 1993: Front Row: Kyle Samuelson, Carrie Leach, Kate Samuelson on Russ Leach’s lap, Charlie Leach, Helen Leach. Middle Row: Polly Leach, Susan Snyder, Ann Samuelson, Brian Samuelson. Back Row: Terry Leach, Jim Snyder.
Below: Family Portrait at Helen and Russell's home at 1232 Kenbrook Hills Drive, Upper Arlington, OH. Bottom row: Charlie Leach, Kyle Samuelson, Carrie Leach; Middle row: Russell Leach, Helen Leach, Baby Kate Samuelson, Ann Samuelson, and Brian Samuelson; Top row: Terry Leach, Polly Leach, Jim Snyder, and Susan Snyder.
Helen loved getting together with friends.
Below: February 1988. Helen with friends. Location is unknown.
Through the years, Helen and Russell went on many trips with their friends. Trips included cruises to Bermuda and the Bahamas, away OSU football games, and a trip to Canada to see Phantom of the Opera. They took several trips out to the western United States on TAUCK tours with friends. On those trips, they visited the Tetons, Yellowstone National Park, Bryce Canyon, Zion National Park, Saltlake City, Scottsdale, the Hearst Castle, and Las Vegas.
Below Image 1: Lynn Ankney and Helen ; Image 2: Ralph and Vivian Poston and Helen
Below Image 1: Russell, Helen, Vivian and Ralph Poston Below Image 2: Lynn and George Ankney and Helen and Russell.
Below: Russell, Helen, and ? and ?.
Below Image 1. Bottom row: Helen, 2nd row: Vivian Poston and ?, 3rd row: ? and Ralph Poston. Image 2: Vivian Poston and Helen, Ralph Poston and Russell.
Below: September 16, 1988; Pittsburgh arrival in Poston's motorhome. Left to right: Helen, Vivian Poston, Betty Gavin, behind Betty... Sue Stivison, and Gerry Libell (Photo courtesy of the Gavins).
Below: Road Trip September 8, 1990, probably to an away OSU football game.
Below Left to right: Sue Stivison, Gerry Libell, Helen Leach, Ralph Poston, Paul Stivison, Vivian Poston, Betty Gavin. (Photo courtesy of the Gavins).
Above: Note that Russell doesn't appear in some of these photographs because he is the photographer.
Below: May, 1990, the Leaches traveled with good friends the Postons, Drakes, Lownies, Neumans, and Sislers to Bermuda.
Below Right: Mr. Russ Leach and Mrs. Helen Leach are the 5th and 6th persons listed on a Tauck to Salt Lake and Yellowstone Park in 1993. Their friends, the Lownies and the 7th and 8th persons.
Below: Photograph of the Tauck Tour group. A black arrow points to Helen. Russell stands immediately behind her.
Below: Two souvenirs from the Tauck Tour to Universal Studios in Hollywood and San Francisco in 1994.
Below: The front and back of a postcard Helen sent to her daughter and son-in-law from their 1994 western Tauck trip.
On June 25, 1994, Helen attended her 55th high school reunion in Greensboro, North Carolina.
Below: The brochure of the event. She, as well as other members of the class, are listed in "The Honor Roll."
Inside the brochure is a photo containing Helen's photograph from 1938-39, along with other members of the choir at Curry High. The caption of the photographs reads, "In the photo above are most of the members of the choir at Curry High in t938-39 that mastered verse-speaking, possibly the forerunner of gangsta rap. They are, left to right, front row, Margaret Norman and Ruth Highfill; second row, Jane Keister, Nancy York and Jane Neal; and third row, Helen Sharpe, Hester Rudd and Judy McMillan."
Below: On December 3, 1995, the Leaches, Wylies, Gavins, and Postons got together for a special seasonal occasion.
In 1995, Helen and Russ celebrated their 50th anniversary with friends and family at their Buckeye Lake Home. The invitation to the event is below:
Below: Helen and Russell at their 50th Anniversary at Buckeye Lake.
During the 57 years that Russell and Helen were married, Russell always recognized Valentines Day, Christmas, their anniversary and Helen's birthday with cards, flowers and presents, often jewelry. For their 50th anniversary, Russ gave Helen a beautiful fossilized amber stone necklace. Some of the cards Russ gave Helen are shown below.
Russell was very busy at work most of his married life and left most of the rearing of the children to Helen. After Russell died, Helen shared with her oldest daughter that Russell had told her prior to his death that she'd done a very good job raising the kids. Helen beamed when she told her daughter what he'd said.
The last trip Helen and Russ took with friends was to Europe June 14 - 23 1996, via the Concorde and the Queen Elizabeth II. "On one special trip, I and Russ flew to England aboard the Concorde. I remember the special treatment that we were given. The plane wasn’t very large. It had a homey feel to it. Once in England, we boarded the QE 2 for a cruise of Europe.
Below left: The Concorde (photo: courtesy of a Concorde web site: <www.concordesst.com>). Below right: The Queen Elizabeth II (from a post card)
Below: Helen kept detailed notes of the trip.
Below: The list of charges Helen and Russell charged to their room 3142 account while on the QE II
Below: Helen's and Russ' tickets to the Tower of London.
Below: Photograph of Helen, Russ and other of the couples with which they went on the trip.
Below: Then entire group on the trip with the Leaches on the QE 2. Helen has a white arrow to indicate where she is in this photo. Russell is directly behind her.
Below: The front and back of a postcard sent by Helen to her daughter and son-in-law from their Concord/QE II trip in 1996.
Circa 1998, Helen and Russ and son-in law Jim and daughter Susan sailed Russ’ motorboat down the Muskingham River through the lochs and to the Ohio River at Marietta, Ohio.
Left: Shown here, Helen enjoyed the sunny day along the Muskingham River.
Below: 1n 1999, Russell and Helen went with their daughter (Susan) and son-in law (Jim) to Seattle, Washington to attend the August 28,1999 wedding of Jim's oldest daughter (Christie to Alan Smith).
Below: Family Portrait in Naples, Florida circa 1999: Front Row: Ann Samuelson, Helen Leach, Jim Snyder Back Row: Kate Samuelson, Susan Snyder, Kelly Samuelson, Kyle Samuelson, Brian Samuelson, Russell Leach.
While in Naples, Florida, Helen and Russell often attended classes, called "Winter College" held by the Ohio State Alumni Association. The association had special speakers. Note the speaker this particular year was John Glenn. In this picture, John is signing Helen's program and Russell is standing immediately behind her. (The year this was taken is unknown).
Below: Helen and Russell attended another "Winter College Event" in Naples, Florida with Ohio friends.
Below: In 2000. Helen's daughter Susan retired from teaching with the Upper Arlington School System. Helen and Russell attended her retirement dinner.
Above: Left and Middle: Russ and Helen-55 years of marriage February, 2000. Right: Russ, Susan and Helen on Thanksgiving Day 2001 at the Moorings Country Club in Naples, FL.
Below: Left: Russell and Helen at the Snyder’s house in Upper Arlington, Ohio. Right: At Snyder’s condo in Naples, Florida. Note the reflection of son Terry Leach in the mirror.
Below: Lucile, Helen's sister died on April 2, 2001. Shown in the photograph are the family members who attended the funeral: Front Row: Kyle Samuelson, Kate Samuelson, Kelly Samuelson, Second Row: Helen, Lyn Emory (Evelyn's daughter), Evelyn, Russell Leach, Third Row: Sandra Henson (Lucile's daughter), Ann Samuelson, Mary Lue Finch (Lucile's daughter), Dr. John Bumgarner, and Susan Snyder.
Below: Helen and sister Evelyn.
Below: Left: Russell and Helen, probably at the Mooring Country Club in Naples, Florida. Right: Helen and Russell on Helen's 80th birthday, March 13, 2002 in their Florida condo.
Below: March 13, 2002: Helen turns 80. Helen became a widow three months later on June 15.
Below: March 13, 2002: Helen's 80th birthday and daughter, Susan in Helen and Russ' Florida condo.
Below: Helen and Russell attended their grandson, Charlie's graduation at Miami University, Ohio in May 2002. Later, they were photographed in Charlie's Miami apartment. Photograph 1: Russell, Charlie, and Helen. Photograph 2: Terry, Charlie, and Helen. One month later, Russell got pneumonia and died.
Below: Shorty after Russell died, Sylvan, Evelyn's granddaughter (Helen's great niece) was married in Virginia. Shown below are Helen and Evelyn on the day of the wedding.
After Russell's death, Helen decided she wanted to live in a one- floor condo in the Columbus area. In 2003, she sold the 3-floor condominium that she and Russell had lived in for 30 years at 1232 Kenbrook Hills Drive in Upper Arlington, Ohio and moved to 5745 Newbank Circle Suite 306, Dublin, Ohio. The new condo building had a view of the Scioto River.
Below are two photographs of her view of the Scioto River and Hayden Rd. Bridge from her balcony.
Helen continued to enjoy winter in her condominium at 17 Bluebill Ave Apt 402 in Naples, Florida and gardening in the summer at her 115 Oak Drive, Buckeye Lake property. She also enjoyed decorating her new condominium, as shown below.
Below: Views of the inside of Helen's condo in 2004:
Helen visited with her children and grandchildren whenever she could.
Below 1st photograph: Kelly and Kate (Helen's granddaughters) with Helen at the Samuelson home in Charlotte, North Carolina. 2nd photograph: Kelly and Helen at the Moorings Country Club in Naples on Thanksgiving 2002. 3rd Photograph: Helen is with her daughters, Susan and Ann, and granddaughters Kelly and Kate at the Moorings Country Club in Naples on Thanksgiving 2002.
Below: Christmas 2002. Helen and daughter, Susan, in Naples, Florida.
Below: Vanderbilt Beach; Helen with grandchildren Kelly, Kate, and Kyle.
Below: Helen posed next to orchids in Lake Placid in 2002, Florida and some other kind of blooming flower in Amish Ohio.
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Below: 2003 Helen bought a new Beetle Volkswagon in Florida. This photograph was taken in front of the Moorings Country Club in Naples, Florida
Below: Susan, Terry, Carrie, and Helen in front of the Mooring Country Club, Naples, Florida.
Below: 2003: Helen, Susan, Carrie, and Terry at Carrie's graduation from Bowling Green in Ohio. g
Below: Helen with granddaughters Kate and Kelly in front of the Samuelson house. Son-in-law Brian is trimming the yard. the year is unknown.
Below: Helen at her grandson (Kyle's) high school graduation. Kate, Kelly, Brian, and Ann Samuelson are sitting with Helen.
Below: Helen with daughter Ann, grandson Kyle, and son in-law Brian.
Below: Taken in 2003, Jane Webster (Helen's sister-in law) and Charlie (grandson) and Carrie (granddaughter) posed with Helen at Susan and Jim's Upper Arlington House.
Below: 2004 Helen and sister-in-law at son's house at Liebs Islandl, Millersport, Ohio.
Below: Helen and Ruby Snyder (Susan's mother-in-law) opened special genealogy calendars Susan had made for each for Christmas 2004. Jim, Susan, and Helen went to Lake Placid, FL to spend the day with Ruby and her husband, Frank.
Below: Helen with her grandchildren on August 6, 2005. With Carrie at left and Charlie, Kate, Kyle, and Kelly at right.
Below: Mother's Day 2005. Jane, Helen's sister-in-law and Helen sitting on Terry's Buckeye Lake home porch.
Below: 2006 photographs Image 1: Helen with daughters Susan and Ann and grandchildren Kyle, Kate, and Kelly in Ann's back yard in Charlotte, North Carolina. Image 2: Helen with daughter Ann, grandchildren Kyle, Kate, and Kelly, and son-in-law Brian.
Below: 4th of July 2006 Helen was relaxing at Susan and Jim's pool in Upper Arlington, OH.
Below: Labor Day 2006: Terry, Helen, and Charlie
Below: On a windy winter day on Vanderbilt Beach, Naples in 2006, it was time to rest on a bench. Helen is sitting next to Ruby and Frank. Jim is behind them. Ruby and Frank are Jim's mother and step- father. Susan took the photo.
Below: A family picture taken in 2007 at Susan and Jim's home. Front row: Kelly, Ann, Helen;Back row: Terry, Charlie, and Susan.
Below: In Susan's yard in Upper Arlington, OH, Helen poses next to a purple clematis vine with son, Terry, daughter, Susan, and grandchildren Charlie and Carrie on Memorial Day 2008.
Below: Helen with her son-in-law (Jim), granddaughter (Carrie), daughter (Susan), grandson (Charlie) and son (Terry)... playing dominoes July 4th, 2008.
Below: Front row: Charlie, Helen, Carrie; Back row: Susan, Jim , Terry. The photograph was taken on Terry's porch at Liebs Isl, Millersport, OH.
Below: Terry posed with Helen in 2008 for one of Susan's photography projects..
Below: Helen and Susan December 2008
Below: 2008: Front row: Helen with Evelyn. Back row: Sandra (Helen's niece), and Susan
As mentioned earlier, Helen and Russell attended some of the "Winter College" offerings held for Ohio State University in Naples, Florida in the winter. Even after his death, she went to classes with friends.
Below: Helen with Lois and Gary Fulmer.
In 2006, two of her high school friends and fellow girl scouts came to visit and stay for several days in Naples, Florida to celebrate Helen's 84th birthday. They were Jane Keister Bolton and Francis Ryan Daily.
As explained earlier, at the same time that Russell and Helen owned homes in Columbus, Upper Arlington, and Dublin (Helen only), they also owned condominiums at Vanderbilt Beach and several houses at Buckeye Lake. During Russell's life, they sold unit 305 at Vanderbilt Towers II and a cottage at Liebs Island, Buckeye Lake. After Russell's death, Helen sold 306 Vanderbilt Towers II for $395,000. She'd also sold the Kenbrook Hills home. At the time of Helen's death, she still owned the Dublin, Ohio property, Unit 402 at 17 Bluebill Ave., Naples, Florida and 115 Oak Drive, Hebron, Ohio (Buckeye Lake). She left the three properties to her three children.
In order to really know Helen, you would need to know about her commitments to a variety of organizations of which she was a member, and the hobbies that she loved. The next two portions of this biography are devoted to these two topics
MEMBERSHIPS:
CHURCHES
Early in her life in Columbus, Ohio, she was a member of Bexley Methodist Church. As a member of that church, she worked in the cradle-roll department when her first child was a baby. All of her children were baptized in that church. Later, Helen was a circle leader, and involved with the Bexley Methodist Church Woman's Society of Christian Service. In the photograph at right, standing on the third step, she served as second vice president of the group.
When a new minister came to the church, Helen, Russell, and son Terry were pictured with him outside the church.
Then, after Helen and Russell moved to Upper Arlington, they joined First Community Church in 1976.
Helen volunteered at the Tri Village Trading Post at the church.
Below: Helen was on of the models in the 1988 Tri Village Post Annual Style Show Luncheon
Later and until her death, she was a member of Central College Church in Westerville, Ohio and Naples United Church of Christ (Naples, FL).
Below: Helen and Russell photos taken for the Central College Hill Church directory.
MILITARY WIVES GROUP
Helen was an active member of the military wives group when Russell was stationed during the Korean War in Leesville, Louisiana. As was mentioned earlier, she sang in the choir.
GARDEN CLUB
Upon returning to Columbus, Ohio after the War, she became involved in a the Eastmoor-South Garden Club.
Below: Newspaper articles describe Helen's garden club involvement. Article 1 shows the organizational meeting. Article 2 shows Helen is the President of the club and they are organizing their first flower show. Article 3 describes the planning of the second flower show. Helen was the advisor for that show. Article 4 shows Helen with a group planning another flower show. Helen often won awards with her creative flower arrangements.
INVOLVEMENT IN HER CHILDRENS' ACTIVITIES.
Helen was an assistant Girl Scout leader for troop 272 (Susan's troop). She helped drive children in her car for school field trips, and she was active in PTA.
Below: Highlighted in red, Helen is an alternate delegate to the PTA council.
TWIG
She was a member of TWIG. TWIGS are groups of women throughout central Ohio who support Children's Hospital through a wide variety of fundraising projects. The article below at left shows that Helen was involved in TWIG as early at 1947. She was a member of TWIG 83, and attending a meeting at the home of her sister-in-law Mrs. Robert Leach. Helen was assisting with the meeting. The article beside it (date unknown) shows Helen had attended a TWIG Forum. At that time she belonged to Twig 56.
CBAA
Helen was an active member of the Women's Auxiliary of the Columbus Bar Association (CBAA).
Below: A Women's Auxiliary of the Columbus Bar Association program for 1970-1971 is shown.
The purpose of the CBAA is to cooperate with the Columbus Bar Association, to activate a program of service and education in connection with the legal profession (State House tours, financial contributions to the Ohio State University College of Law and the Capital University Law School), and to promote through a social program a better acquaintance and friendship among the families of lawyers. Helen was Membership Committee Chairman 1964-65, and served on the Telephone Committee 1971-72, and on the Hospitality Committee 1973/74. She was a charter member of CBAA in 1959, and was honored at the 50th celebration of the organization in 2009, as shown in the 3rd, 4th, and 5th photographs below:
Below Left: Newspaper publication March 12, 1962. Next: Newspaper publication May 27, 1962.
Below: The date of this newspaper article is unknown, but it is years after the ones above, as indicated by Helen's grey hair.
Below: In 1994, the CBAA (Columbus Bar Association Auxiliary) news shows a photo of "A gathering of the Women's Wednesday daytime Bridge Group at the Buckeye Lake home of Helen Leach on July 5th. "
Below: This is the photograph used in the article above.
Below: In 2009, the CBAA celebrated its 50th Anniversary and its Charter Members, of which Helen was one.
THEMIS
THEMIS: The membership shall consist of the lawyer's wives, now members of this club. New members may be invited only from wives of members of the Lawyers Club of Columbus, Ohio. The purpose of the club shall be to advance the social and educational interests of its members and to promote the legal profession.
THEMIS was organized in 1933. THEMIS was a Greek Goddess of Justice. Over the years, Helen served as the President, Hostess chairman, Telephone Chairwoman, and reserve on the telephone committee. With Russell, she was hostess for a meeting and picnic dinner at Buckeye Lake, host of a meeting at Kenbrook Hills, and hostess for a meeting at other member's houses.
THE COLUMBUS SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA WOMEN'S ASSOCIATION
The Columbus Symphony Orchestra Women's Association was the first volunteer organization formed in support of the Columbus Symphony Orchestra and assists the Board of Trustees in maintaining the Symphony and works to foster, promote and increase the musical knowledge and appreciation of the public through educational activities. Helen was a member of the Melody Unit of this organization. At the time of her membership, there were 16 units in the organization.
Prior to 1963, when Helen and her family moved from the Enfield Rd. home, Helen became a Young Associate of the Columbus Symphony Orchestra.
Below: Image 1: A Women's Association of the Columbus Symphony Orchestra Program 1992-1993 is shown. Image 2: A Melody Unit program for 1993-1994 is shown.
Below: The Symphony held a raffle, and Helen won $1000. Her friend, Lois Fulmer had sold her the ticket.
REPUBLICAN PARTY MEMBER AND SUPPORTER
Helen, both during and after Russell's death, was a supporter of the Republican party.
HOBBIES:
Throughout her life, Helen had a variety of hobbies besides those described earlier (singing in choirs, and live flower arranging.)
COLLECTING ITEMS
She collected a variety of things including chickens, miniature tea sets, shells, tea cups, rocks, Royal Doulton & Limoges, other curios, and antiques. A small sampling of her items are shown below:
Below is one of her favorite places to shop for antiques. It was a stop on the drive from Columbus, Ohio to visit her parents and other family in Greensboro, NC..
In addition to the antiques shown above, she owned a walnut dining room table, a breakfront, and 6 chairs that she special ordered as antique reproductions from Benbow Furniture Company in Greensboro, NC. She needle pointed the seats of the chairs.
NEEDLE CRAFTS
At all stages of her life, she enjoyed creating needle crafts.
Below Image 1: Crocheted hot pad using pop bottle caps, Images 2-4: Dresser Scarfs.
Below: Glasses cases.
Below: Two views of the same quilt. Helen made several additional counted- cross stitch quilts.
Below: Needlepoint bell pull.
Below: Two needlepoint pictures designed and sewn by Helen.
Below: The clock is dated 1962.
Below: A needle point footstool.
CERAMICS
In the 1970s, Helen joined her daughters and daughter-in-law for ceramics classes that met at a woman's home. The woman supplied the materials... clay cast samples and stains and glazes. The designs were painted on by those in the class. Those with glazes like the four below done by Helen were placed into the kiln.
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PAINTING
Helen took watercolor painting classes, one with her niece Sandra in 1988 and another with her daughter (Susan) at a much later date.
Below: One of Helen's watercolors from a class she took.
MAKING DRIED FLOWER ARRANGEMENTS
Below: A few of the dried flower arrangements Helen created. She dried many of the flowers she used in her arrangements. She especially liked using her dried hydrangeas, as shown in the third arrangement. The third arrangement is in a grapevine basket made by her Aunt Gertie (one of her father's sisters.)
WALKING ON THE BEACH
She adored walking on the beach. Her favorite beach was Barefoot Beach in Naples, FL. where she looked for tiny orange horse conches. (After Helen's death, her daughter purchased a memorial brick for the Barefoot Beach Pavilion in her honor).
Below: In her younger days she went without a hat, but thought wiser as she got older. The second photograph was taken in 2007. The photograph at right was taken ~ 2010.
GARDENING
She found great joy in gardening and harvesting the "fruits" of her labor. At Buckeye Lake, her garden flowers included a multitude of varieties, not limited to roses, Shasta lilies, hostas and day lilies. She commented that she especially liked roses and Shasta lilies because they smelled so good. She grew gardenias, amaryllis and orchids in her condo in Naples, Florida.
Below: Helen and her gardens at Buckeye Lake in Ohio.
BOWLING
Helen's sports interests included bowling. She was on a women's bowling league with the Bexley Methodist Church called the "Strike Outs." On May 15, 1972, the team won the league championship. Each of the women on her team received the Women's International Bowling Congress 1971-71 League Champion patch. Her league consisted of 12 teams of 3 women each. They played at Holiday Lanes in Columbus, Ohio.
GOLF
She was a member of two golf clubs, playing in women's leagues at the Ohio State University Golf Club in Upper Arlington, Ohio and the Moorings County Club in Naples, Florida.
Below: Helen saved everything that was of importance to her. These golf results from the OSU golf course were found among her possessions after she died. These results are from 1978-1983. Helen played with the nine holers. At the time, she was 56 to 61 years old. The webmaster highlighted Helen's name in red..
Below: 1989, Local golf Tournaments benefits Arthritis Foundation. In this photograph, Helen is helping to hold the trophy, but it is unknown whether she is a winner. It is ironic that the beneficiary of this event was the Arthritis Foundation. Helen had very severe rheumatoid arthritis in her hands. At the time of this tournament, she was 67.
ATTENDED SPORTS EVENTS WITH RUSSELL
She attended Ohio State University Football and Basketball games with Russ.
Below: Helen at a football game in 1990.
BRIDGE
She played bridge throughout her adult life, belonged to many bridge clubs, and eventually became a Goren Contract Bridge player. Below is the front and inside of one of the Bridge tallies found in Helen's things after she died.
Helen's favorites
* Body Soap: Yardley's oatmeal and almond, and Yardley's lavender.
*Face Cremes: Ponds Cold Cream and Nivea Cream
*Body Powder: Este Lauder Perfumed Body Power "Beautiful"
* Ice cream: Any kind but.... especially fresh Graeter's peach and Haagen Dazs' coffee. In Naples, Florida, she liked visiting the Royal Scoop ice cream store.
*Shopping everywhere and purchasing many outfits from catalogs. Below is thought to be her original Lazarus Credit card.
* Visiting Amish country and the Hocking Hills in Ohio, especially in the fall.
* Fresh fruit and vegetable stands in both states where she lived.
*Her favorite recipes included many of those of her mother
* Offering words of wisdom to her children:
1) "Things always work out for the best."
2. "Just do the best you can do. That's all I expect."
Below This photograph was taken by Susan in 2008 at Helen's Vanderbilt Surf Colony III condominium.
Helen never lost her North Carolina accent, despite the 65 years she spent living in Ohio.
At the age of 88, she died on August 20, 2010 in Riverside Hospital, Columbus, Ohio. She had spent many months in and out of hospitals and nursing homes beginning just before her 88th birthday with heart and COPD problems. Her obituaries appeared in the Columbus Dispatch in Columbus, Ohio, in the News & Record in Greensboro, NC., and online.
Below: Obituary in Columbus Dispatch
Columbus Dispatch in Columbus, Ohio:
Helen Sharpe Leach, age 88, died Friday, August 20th of heart failure. Helen attended Woman’s College in Greensboro, NC and Queens College in Charlotte, NC. She was a member of Bexley Methodist Church in Columbus, acted as a circle leader, was a member of TWIG, and the Melody Unit of the Columbus Symphony Orchestra. Most recently, she was a member of Central College Presbyterian Church in Westerville, OH and Naples United Church of Christ in Florida. She was also a member of Themis (ladies organization of the Lawyer’s Club), Women’s Auxiliary of the Columbus Bar Association, and various bridge groups. Helen enjoyed needlepoint, gardening at Buckeye Lake, OH, and collecting shells along Naples, Florida beaches. She is preceded in death by her husband of 57 years, Russell Leach; her parents Terry and Gertrude Sharpe of Greensboro, NC.; her sisters, Lucile Long of Columbia, SC., and Alma Garlow and Evelyn Bumgarner of Greensboro, NC. She is survived by her children Susan Snyder and husband James, Terry Leach, and Ann Samuelson and husband, Brian; sister-in-law Jane Webster; grandchildren Charles, Carrie, Kyle, Kate, and Kelly; numerous nieces and nephews and great nieces and nephews; and many friends. Public visitation will be at Shoedinger Northwest Chapel on Friday, August 27th from 4-6 PM, 1740 Zollinger Road, Upper Arlington, OH. The Funeral Ceremony will be on Saturday, August 28th at 10:00 AM at Central College Presbyterian Church, 975 S. Sunbury Rd., Westerville, OH. Burial will follow at Union Cemetery. Helen was a firm believer in donating to charities. In lieu of flowers, please consider donating to the American Heart Association or the American Red Cross.
Below: Obituary in Greensboro newspaper.
News & Record Greensboro, NC :
Helen Sharpe Leach, age 88, died August 20th of heart failure. Helen attended Woman’s College in Greensboro, NC and Queens College in Charlotte, NC. Helen was a member of Central College Presbyterian Church in Westerville, OH and Naples United Church of Christ in Florida; several lawyers’ wives’ organizations; and various bridge groups. Helen enjoyed needlepoint, gardening at Buckeye Lake, OH, and collecting shells along Naples, Florida beaches. She is preceded in death by her husband of 57 years, Russell Leach; her parents Terry and Gertrude Sharpe of Greensboro, NC.; her sisters, Lucile Long of Columbia, SC., and Alma Garlow and Evelyn Bumgarner of Greensboro, NC. She is survived by her children Susan Snyder and husband James, Terry Leach, and Ann Samuelson and husband, Brian; sister-in-law Jane Webster; grandchildren Charles, Carrie, Kyle , Kate, and Kelly; numerous nieces and nephews and great nieces and nephews; and many friends. Public visitation is at Shoedinger Northwest Chapel on Friday, August 27th from 4-6 PM, 1740 Zollinger Road, Upper Arlington, OH. The Funeral Ceremony will be on Saturday, August 28th at 10:00 AM at Central College Presbyterian Church, 975 S. Sunbury Rd., Westerville, OH. Burial will follow at Union Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, please consider donating to the American Heart Association or the American Red Cross.
Below: Online Obituary
Left: A rose that had been removed from Helen's casket on the day of her burial, and dried for preservation. This rose was one from a blanket of gorgeous peach roses that covered the casket. Helen would have loved the roses and other memorial flower arrangements sent by family and friends.
Helen was buried next to Russell, who had died 8 years earlier.
Lifetime Events Summary:
Contact person for this website is Susan Snyder: susanleachsnyder@gmail.com
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