Helen Louise Blaney was born February 3, 1933, to Rudolph and Gertrude Guhlstorf, the second of two daughters. She grew up in Oklahoma City in a close-knit, extended family, surrounded by a large group of cousins descended from Pastor Friedrich Schwan and Louise (Schmid) Schwan. She was especially close to her sister Dorothy. As adults, hardly a day went by that they didn’t speak.
Helen graduated from Central High School in Oklahoma City in 1950 and soon went to work for Southwestern Bell in downtown Oklahoma City. She was a skilled stenographer and typist, who rose to be an executive-level secretary. She worked at Southwestern Bell, with a gap for raising children, until her retirement in 1988. Her loyalties to the company extended well beyond retirement. She loved that she got free phone service in perpetuity, and she was a long-time volunteer for the Pioneers, a community service organization made up of former phone company employees. Her skills as a secretary were recognized across her lifetime. At the Pioneers and many other organizations and groups she joined, not a one failed to exhort her to serve as group secretary.
On August 28, 1954, Helen married John William Blaney. The ceremony was held at Zion Lutheran Church, where both had grown up. They had three sons, David, Kevin, and Brian. Though excessively proud of her sons, she had always hoped for a daughter, a desire only realized through the arrival of a granddaughter, whom she tried to spoil.
Family and church were at the center of Helen’s life. She was a loving mother and wife. She thrived as part of a church community and remained an active member of Zion Lutheran Church until her death.
But Helen had a love of all things Christmas in a more secular sense as well. Celebrating Christmas was almost a profession. It was difficult to find an undecorated spot in her house, which she shared with an army of large Santa Claus figures. She also added a theatrical element, often playing Santa Clause at events. Most notable are climbing the Great Wall in China and riding in a rickshaw in Singapore in Santa suits. She also found joy in collecting dolls, from paper dolls to doll houses and porcelain figures from Dresden. She proudly displayed them around the house, though they too had to share space with the army of Santas.
Helen first traveled outside Oklahoma when her sister Dorothy took her by train to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, with a stop in Chicago. She must have been 12 or 13 at the time. This trip sparked a lifetime love of travel. While she certainly loved family trips in states nearby Oklahoma, she dreamed of something further afield. With children grown, she finally got to live that dream. She traveled widely across the US and (finally) internationally. Germany was her favorite destination, but she also remembered very fondly trips to China, Vietnam, Croatia, the Baltics, Australia, Costa Rica, and Guatemala. She hoped to go almost everywhere but only made it to 66 countries before her international travel days ended. In her last years, she had to settle for travel programs, which she watched avidly.
Helen spent her last years at Concordia Life Plan Community among friends.
Helen is survived by her sons, David Blaney (Sherry Gray), Kevin Blaney, and Brian Blaney (Tina Eager Blaney); her granddaughter, Patricia Grunewald (Griffin Grunewald); her niece, Barbara Bonham; and cousin, Betty Crown.
Her visitation will be held from 1-8 PM on Wednesday, July 31, at Buchanan Funeral Service, 8712 N Council Rd. OKC, OK 73132. Her funeral service will be held at 10 AM, Thursday, August 1, at Zion Lutheran Church, 7701 W Britton Rd. OKC, OK 73132.
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