Helen Frances Hunt

Helen Frances Enright, was the fourth child born to Jeremiah and Elizabeth Enright on February 24th, 1921. Helen grew up in West Springfield, Massachusetts where she attended Catholic school alongside her older siblings Mary, Elizabeth, and Jeremiah. After graduating from Cathedral High School at sixteen, she enrolled at a local college for Library Studies. Helen cared for her ailing mother and worked as a librarian at Westover Army-Air Base. In 1948, Helen met Edward Hunt II, a captain at the time, while attending a mutual friend's wedding in Springfield. Three years later, she married Major Hunt in Roswell, New Mexico on October 27th, 1951. Helen and Edward's military family grew with each new assignment. New Mexico brought their first redheaded daughter, Helen Elizabeth, in January 1953. Reassigned to Texas the following year, they welcomed their second redheaded daughter, Mary Joanna, in December. Moving overseas to Okinawa produced a blonde boy, Edward Everett III, in January of '56. Major Hunt was subsequently assigned to Lowry Air Force Base and the family put down roots in Aurora. Shortly after buying their home on Oakland Street in the Fall of '58, Helen and Ed completed their crew that December with a third redheaded daughter, Maggie Theresa Helen was a devoted wife, mother, and volunteer. Helen encouraged and supported her children in their wide variety of interests from ballet to baseball. Additionally, Helen gave time to the Grey Ladies of the Red Cross, organized events for her children's schools as a Room Mother, directed other volunteers at the school libraries, was active in Historic Denver, was a founding member of Northwest Aurora Neighborhood Organization, and was heavily involved with the Democratic Political Caucus. After investing so much of her time in other people, Helen went back to school in the late Sixties, earning a Bachelor of Science degree in Library Sciences from Metropolitan State College of Denver. In the Seventies, the Denver Public Library offered Helen a position specializing in rare books. Helen graciously sidestepped the job offer to volunteer instead when she heard two other applicants had families to support. Helen also displayed that grace in her frequent hospitality for hungry cadets from the Air Force Academy. The first half of the Eighties brought a bevy of grandsons for Helen and Ed: Edward Everett Hunt IV, David Thomas, Jeffrey Paul, and Andrew Justin Jones and Robert Randall Birdwell. Kelly Serene Hunt, their one and only granddaughter, arrived the day after Christmas in 1986. Helen and Ed made dozens of trips to visit their children and grandchildren over the next few decades. They visited the countries of England, Germany, and Panama and many of the United States: Alaska, California, Nebraska, New Mexico, Indiana, Ohio, Texas, and Virginia, basically wherever her children had wandered. Helen also made time to visit her siblings in Connecticut, Massachusetts, and New York. As a grandmother, Helen was renowned for reading bedtime stories, overseeing furniture fort construction, carrying Andes mints in her purse, and cooking the greatest fudge the world has ever known. On her own time, Helen loved reading murder mysteries. She could read an entire book in a day, often six or seven a week, and finally exhausted the entire suspense catalog of the Tallyn's Reach Library. Between books, Helen was an avid fan of all the Colorado sports teams; she could often be heard armchair coaching the Broncos or Rockies to victory. In their losing seasons, we can only assume they didn't listen to her. After Helen and Ed moved to Heritage Eagle Bend in 2003, they began attending mass at Our Lady of Loreto Catholic Parish. Helen would often bake chocolate chip cookies or concoct some of that famous fudge for the parish bake sales. Around this time, Helen also became a member of the Red Hat Society, an organization for women over 50 inspired by the poet Jenny Joseph: ""When I am an old woman, I shall wear purple, with a red hat which doesn't go and doesn't suit me. "" Helen greatly enjoyed the company of her friends and neighbors in the Heritage Eagle Bend community, making a point to attend monthly meetings and dinners at the club. Ever the adventurous spirit, Helen even limbered up at a yoga class once with her granddaughter Kelly and participated in water aerobics. She happily welcomed the addition of Kailea Patrice Hunt, wife of Edward Hunt IV, and John Davis Fleck, husband of Kelly Serene Hunt.. Helen and Ed became great grandparents with the arrival of Olivia Serene in 2009 and Isabella Patrice in 2011. They doted on their great grandchildren as often as they could over the next several years. Helen became a widow in January of 2013, but she wouldn't leave Ed waiting long. On October 29th, 2015 Helen Frances Hunt passed away peacefully at the age of 94. Helen charmed everyone who ever met her, living a full life with grace and poise. She is survived by: Helen E. Palazzolo, Mary J. Birdwell, Col (ret) Edward E. Hunt III and his wife Karen S. (Hull) Hunt, Maggie T. Jones and her husband, Col (ret) David T. Jones and the aforementioned grand-children and great-grandchildren. She will always remain in our hearts. Donations may be made to the Rocky Mtn. Cancer Assistance, PO Box 6625, Denver, CO 80206 or St. Joseph Fund at our Lady Loreto Catholic Church.