Dupuis, Helen Prena – Helen Prena Dupuis had planned to reach Heaven some time after the birthday extravaganza she had planned for June 25, so it surprised everyone when she passed away on May 6, 2024. I'm sure Jesus Himself was a little taken aback when she showed up because she had never been early for anything in 91 years. Some of you may have known her as Tanner, Creelman or LaCombe. Don't worry though. The names were all legal: we checked.
Mom had a questionable sense of humour to say the least. For some unknown reason, she once mailed a dead mouse to a sister, which surprised Barb and probably broke at least a couple of federal laws. Another sister once complained to Mom that she wasn't writing enough so Mom unspooled a roll of toilet paper... and wrote a 10 foot long letter on it and then carefully re-rolled it onto the tube and sent it off in the mail. I don't think Marion ever complained about not getting letters again. The time she put a very life-like rubber snake in Marion's washing machine was neither appreciated nor as funny as mom thought it was at the time.
It took Mom 89 years, but she managed to stay above the dirt longer than all three of her ex-husbands: a feat she seemed quite proud of.
Like many of you, Mom lived through the 'Depression,' but she was still confident the Leafs would break out of their 57 year slump. Mom's answer to everyone's problems was birthday cake. One day Rick walked in the house and Helen said, “Do you want a piece of birthday cake?” To which he responded reasonably, “Who's birthday is it?” She said, “I'm sure it's somebody's. Get me a slice while you're at it. And it better be a hell of a lot bigger than the piece Jean gave me for breakfast.” Cake fixed everything. Mom was a great cook, although her homemade gravy left a lot to be desired... except that one Thanksgiving when she decided to get rid of the lumps by pouring it through a colander.... fortunately, she forgot to put a bowl under the colander so the gravy went down the drain and we were left with little clumps of dry flour. Best gravy she ever made.
Mom usually drove older cars but in 1972 she got a brand new big block Dodge Charger and then spent the next 52 years wondering why she got a speeding ticket three days after getting the car. She tried to hide the speeding ticket but her daughter, Inga was with her at the time, and she sold Mom out almost immediately. We never let her live that ticket down.
As if raising five kids wasn't enough work for three lifetimes, Mom chose to spend her 50s and 60s doing foster-care for special needs children. I don't think anyone except Mom could tell you exactly how many kids came through her home. To her dying day, I bet she could still name every one of them. And I would guess that the lives of every one of them were better for it. She missed them all, especially Mandy and Calvin.
In 2003 or so, mom decided she'd like to have a pen pal... Did anyone even have pen pals in the 21st century? We found two for her: Donna, who lives in Minnesota, at 96 was still writing and mailing letters until mom's passing. Kim, in South Carolina, has kept in contact through emails. They are the best friends mom never met. During a hospital stay, mom met Janice and her husband Ben, who over the course of 20-some years, became the best friends mom ever had.
Thanks to her nephew Chris and his wife Amanda, Mom got to ride a horse on her 87th birthday: something she hadn't done in more than 40 years. Mom taught all of her kids to cook, and she taught Inga, Jean, Karen and Ann how to sew and make clothes. They made dresses and bonnets and all sorts of things that they forced their little brother to model for her. Mom was quite proud of what she had taught the girls. Rick was not so much.
Mom loved trying new and exotic restaurants (that's a lie... she liked Pizza Delight. Period. Full stop). At home, she would spend half her time at the dinner table rearranging the food on her plate so she could secretly drop it onto the floor... not one bite of which actually touched the floor because there was always a dog sitting right there (in 91 years, mom never had a skinny dog. Imagine). Speaking of dogs.... Rusty, Rebel, Maverick, Shadow, Sam, Sheba, Cooper, Skip, Bear, Kandi, Chief, Penny, Lady, Fang, Jake, Toby and Lulu, who was, in fact, a toy poodle and not the Rottweiler Mom thought she was. And the handicapped duck named Buttercup that mom rescued when she was a kid... My God, Rainbow Bridge must have been out of control when Mom showed up.
Speaking of pets, in 2007, Mom was named Pet Foster Parent of the Year by the Nova Scotia Golden Retriever Rescue... which we know she didn't deserve because she kept every dog they asked her to foster. Any time someone called to inquire about a dog, Mom would put them through the third degree and eventually they'd stop asking. And Mom would call Karen, the coordinator and say apparently this is another dog that isn't adoptable so it might as well stay at her house... You could have smuggled plutonium into the country easier than you could adopt a dog from Mom. She was the most notorious Foster Fail in the history of pet fostering. But she was proud of the certificate.
Mom was predeceased by her mom and dad, Ruby and Lester Tanner; brothers, Fred, Dan, Stan, Harold; sisters, Lillian, Dollie, Marion and Marilyn; in-laws, Helen, Mae, Edith, Elza, Arnold, Neils, Ralph, Charlie, Dick; daughter, Karen Lee; and granddaughter, Candy and grandson, Jason.
She left behind daughters, Ann, Jean (Jim), Inga; one son, Rick (Theresa); and (like a daughter) Barb; grandchildren, Tara, Lorne (Tina), Adam, Charlotte (Marc), Calvin (Samantha), Jamie (Angie), Sarah (Jake), Paul; great-grandchildren, Jesse, Aly, Kobe, Nathan, Isabel, Jason, Dillon, Avery, Elliott, Coen, Jamieson, Mason and Camden; along with her beloved sister, Barbara and two special ladies, Joyce and Joan. She also left behind more nephews and nieces than you could shake a stick at... except one... there's one nephew named Kary that she always wanted to shake a good stick at because when he was about 7 years old, he somehow talked Mom into getting on a toboggan with him. Just as they started down the hill, Kary yelled, “See you later, Helen!” And he rolled off the toboggan, leaving her screaming all the way to the bottom of the hill. Mom loved Kary but she never got on another toboggan thanks to him.
Each of her kids, at one time or another, took care of Mom, but a very special thank you needs to be said to her daughter, Jean and son-in-law, Jim, who went above and beyond anything anyone could have expected of them during Mom's final years. Thank you both so much. You are appreciated and we love you very much.
The family is still trying to process the fact that Mom left an awful lot of stuff in her doll cabinet. Lawyers may have to get involved as they try to decide who doesn't have to take any of it. Mom wants that doll named Chloe to go to Jim. She said she wants Chloe to be staring at him every time he gets up in the middle of the night. But not in the bathroom: that would be just creepy, but she's to be staring at Jim when he tries to go back to sleep. But the rest of the stuff... I'm just saying, it should be divided equally among everyone except me (guess who me is).
Whether you knew this woman as Helen, Aunt Helen, Toots, Mrs. Dupuis, Grandma, Gram, Grandma D or Mom, just know that she made a difference in her family's life, and we hope in yours too. If you want to spend a minute with Mom, just hug your pet. That'll be her.
Even on the hottest summer days, you could always find Mom curled up in her Lazy-Boy wearing a sweater and covered up with a blanket, so to make her happy, cremation has taken place. Where her ashes are to be scattered was a secret between mom and Ann, so maybe you should all hold off vacuuming until we find out what Mom's plan was. In lieu of flowers, Mom would like donations made to Nova Scotia Golden Retriever Rescue, 119 Rocky Ridge Rd, Truro, Nova Scotia B6L 1S6 or e-transfer to nsgrr@eastlink.ca.
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