Helen W. Ganus

Helen W. Ganus

Found peace on Sunday, February 27, 2022, at age 87.

Beloved wife of 63 years to the late Edwin T Ganus, SR. Loving mother of her devoted children, Mary Ganus, Cynthia Kania (Joseph Stiletti), Edwin Ganus, Jr. (Lori-Ann), Karen Jones (Matthew) and Sharon Kratzer (Joe). Proud Granny/Nanny of David, MaryKate (Steven), Hayden, Izzy and Sam. She will be missed by her great-grandchildren Keller, Raina, Lorenzo, Emerson, and Cooper and much-loved Sam, Julia, and Ava. Aunt of Larry (Michele), Harriette, Wesley, Bonnie, and Bryan. Great Aunt of Nick, Emily, Aidan, and Tristan. Sister-in-Law of Mary Ward and Kelly (Phyllis) Prince. Further survived by Aunt Annie Sasser, beloved Friends, Dave and Betty Grypp, The Mansfield Ladies, Rhonda Grant and Dale Lewis. Helen is lovingly preceded in death by her husband Edwin T. Ganus, Sr.; her parents, Mary Kate and John Ward; her four siblings: Margaret Ellen, John Elbert, Louis Vernon, and Wesley Elwood; three stepfathers: Raymond Christman, Melvin Barnes, and Clyde Turbeville; Uncle Herbert (Hubbard) Sasser; Nieces: Susan Ward and Lisa Ward Thomas; Stepsister: Marcelle (nee Turbeville) Prince; Family Friend: Bambi Grajek-Specter.

Helen was born Frances Helen Ward to Mary Kate (nee Sasser) and John Wesley Ward on September 8, 1934 in Columbus County, North Carolina. Named Frances after her maternal grandmother Frances Missouri, she was called Helen.

Growing up in southeastern North Carolina, Helen attended schools in Columbus, Brunswick, and New Hanover counties. She was a 1953 graduate of New Hanover High School where she excelled in home economics and civics. During high school, Helen enjoyed working as a soda jerk after school at the neighborhood drug store. She never lost her love for making floats, banana splits, and sundaes.

Helen married her sweetheart Edwin T. Ganus on June 6,1953 at Winterhaven Presbyterian Church in Wilmington, North Carolina. After a reception at her parents’ home, the couple traveled to Wisconsin for their honeymoon and to start a new life together in Milwaukee.

In 1963 Helen and the family moved to West Allis where her children attended public school. Amid raising five children, Helen somehow found time to be the lunch lady, the Girl Scout Leader, and the President of the PTA at Washington Elementary School.

While the children were still in grade school, Helen began her career as a Nursing Assistant at West Allis Memorial Hospital. Over a 26-year span, Helen worked in several specialty units but, hands-down, her favorite assignment was in Labor and Delivery. She loved caring for the new-born babies. All that rocking and feeding. Helen was such a natural. She retired from the hospital in 1997.

The move to Mansfield Drive in Greendale occurred in late spring 1971. She loved the new neighborhood teeming with like-aged children for her own kids to play with. With over 30 kids living in the ten homes that lined Mansfield Drive, there was never a dull moment. Helen thrived in the company of other devoted mothers on that street. Each year she would help organize the “Annual Mansfield Drive Block Party” where barricades closed off the street to the rest of the world and the inhabitants partied all day and into the night. The women of Mansfield Drive were forever dubbed the “Mansfield Ladies”. This annual event meant the world to Helen. She still reveled in the memories to the very end of her days.

Helen’s talents were many, but her holiday hospitality will always be remembered as the highlight of the season. A beautifully set table, delicious southern food, and sweet tea with lemon. Helen was famous for having a minimum of three desserts on her holiday dinner table.

A year after Ed’s death, Helen moved to her first-ever place of her own. She put her new furniture where she wanted, ate what she wanted and did what she wanted. This was a new experience and she loved it! Helen read Debbie Macomber novels and developed a new-found interest in painting and coloring. She was prolific and felt accomplished.

The Ganus family would like to express their gratitude to the staff at Brenwood Park Assisted Living for their compassionate care and kindness provided when Helen was no longer able to care for herself. When her time was near, Heartland Healthcare and Hospice provided the medical care that Helen required and the emotional support that the family needed. The family is forever grateful for the dignity and respect that the hospice staff gave to Helen in her last days.

Helen always enjoyed the warm months of summer so we cannot think of a better time to commemorate her life. Please know that a celebration of Helen’s life will take place this summer. The date and location of the gathering has yet to be determined. If you wish to attend, please let us know. You are welcomed to call Cindy at (414) 510-3174 or send an email to cynthia.kania@gmail.com to leave your best contact information.

“Mom, we are forever grateful for your steadfast love, your kindness, and the encouragement you gave each of us to be more than we ever thought we could be.” Your loving children.