Helen Gloria Rae (Gilmour) Kalfas

Helen G.  Kalfas (February 05, 1930 – July 21,2024)

It is with great sorrow that we announce the passing of Helen Gloria Rae (Gilmour) Kalfas at the age of 94 on July 21, 2024, in Denver, Colorado. Her boundless love, sharp wit, laughter, wisdom and grace will be greatly missed.

Born on February 5, 1930, in Lemesurier, Québec, Canada to Hugh Kirby Gilmour (1898–1949), a Presbyterian minister, and Lottie Rae (Sharpe) Gilmour (1908–1980), a former church organist, both of Ontario, Canada, Helen was the second of five children, Helen moved with her family to Saint Elmo, Ontario in 1939, into their first home with running water and electricity, as well as a big garden which would help to supplement the rationing during World War II.

At the age of 13, Helen had her first job, caring for two children of a family living five miles away. She attended Maxville High School for two years, later graduating from Nepean High School, close to Ottawa after her family moved to Richmond, Ontario.

Helen received several scholarships to attend Queen’s University in Kingston, Ontario, where she enrolled in their five-year program in the School of Nursing in 1948, which included three years at Ottawa Civic Hospital School of Nursing, from which she graduated in 1952 — receiving an award for the highest standing in bedside nursing — and remained a proud alumna, attending reunions and staying connected with the friends she made there, throughout the rest of her life.

She returned to Queen’s University and graduated in 1953 with a B. S. in Nursing Science, after which she accepted a position back at Ottawa Civic Hospital, where she worked for a year as a nursing instructor.

With a strong desire to travel outside Canada, she accepted a nursing position in Alaska, but the offer was withdrawn due to budget cuts. Not deterred, she soon found another nursing position in Reading, Pennsylvania. She was flown from Ottawa to Reading for the interview and was offered a job on the spot as a nursing instructor at Reading Hospital, with a salary of $500 per month.

At the hospital in early 1956, she met a young neurosurgeon, John Plato Kalfas, who had immigrated from Europe following the war and naturalized as a U.S. citizen in 1955. He heard that Helen was planning a trip to Europe with two friends and offered his help and recommendations on places to visit and see during the six-week trip. When Helen returned, she and John began a courtship which took them to the end of 1956, when they were married in a Greek Orthodox ceremony on December 21, and a Presbyterian Ceremony on December 22.

They moved to Youngstown, Ohio the next day, where Helen was instrumental in helping John set up his medical practice. They proceeded to have seven children between 1957 and 1968, eventually raising the family in Liberty Township and managing the large house on Wildfern Drive, which Helen loved so much, with the assistance of housekeeper Ruth Ramey (who became a close friend).  Helen always found the time to support all of her childrens’ chosen extracurricular activities and sports.

In addition to being a great cook, and an avid tennis player, Helen loved to entertain. She threw many parties at the house — cocktail parties, holiday gatherings, costume-themed events, and a full Hawaiian luau. She loved gardening and gave her time to such pursuits as volunteering with the Youngstown Symphony Society and later, with Hospice.

Her time with John marked a very loving relationship, and they enjoyed traveling together — sometime with the children, sometimes on their own — in Europe, Asia, Australia, Canada and throughout the US, including several trips to Hawaii. They developed a fondness for skiing, and often took the family to Vail, Colorado, where they eventually set up a vacation home.

Helen enjoyed the visits from (and visiting) her mother and relatives many times. Unfortunately, during one such visit in September of 1980, her mother sadly succumbed to a stroke, and passed away at the age of 72, with Helen at her side.

Helen and John raised their children with love and worked hard to ensure that each of them could follow his or her chosen higher education path. Tragically,
Helen’s time with her husband was cut short, as John succumbed to cancer in 1986, at the age of 63.

Though devastated, Helen found strength in her family. The holidays in particular brought her joy as she often had the whole family together. She continued to pursue her interests in gardening and travel — eventually hitting all seven continents as well as the North Pole. And she developed an enduring love of dogs, especially those who would be her companions for much of the rest of her life.

In 1995, with the impending arrival of her first grandchild, she made the decision to leave the house on Wildfern Drive, and move to Lafayette, Colorado to take an active part in raising her granddaughter, Sophie. She later moved to Denver to help with the raising of her two grandsons, Jaxson and Apollo. Being a part of her grandchildren’s lives was a great comfort to Helen, and the family traditions continued in Colorado.

Helen spent her final days filled with love surrounded by her family.

She is survived by her children: Iain H. Kalfas (m. Holly (Gepfert) Kalfas) of Cleveland, Plato J. Kalfas of Youngstown, Lisa E. Kalfas (m. Tom Gordon) of Boulder, Philip B. Kalfas of Aspen, David A. Kalfas of Denver, Gregory H. (Gregor) Kalfas of San Francisco, and Leta H. Kalfas (m. Anne (Polyzou) Kalfas) of Denver; her grandchildren: Sophie Gordon, Jaxson Sharpe, Apollo Kalfas, Natalie Kalfas and Claire Gordon-Neff; her sisters Dorothea (Gilmour) Watson and Mary (Gilmour) Swanson; a beloved niece and several nephews. She is predeceased by her husband, John P. Kalfas, her brother, Iain Gilmour and her sister, Mona Gilmour.

A funeral will be held at Fox Funeral Home, 4700 Market St. Youngstown, OH, 44512 on Tuesday, July 30, 2024.  Visiting hours will begin at 9:30 am, and the service will begin at 11:00.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations made in Helen’s name to one of the following charities:  The Humane Society, or the ASPCA.  Our special appreciation goes to Brighton Hospice of Denver and Balfour Senior Living, who took such great care of Helen in her final months.

Arrangements have been entrusted to the Edward J. Fox & Sons Funeral Home, 4700 Market St. Boardman.