She was born to parents the late Anthony and Helen (Sears) George, June 11, 1935 in Barnstable, MA. She graduated from Barnstable High School, class of 1953. Helen was married to the late James H. Andrews in 1955 and raised their family in North Chatham, MA.
Helen is survived by her four children, Craig G., Sean T., Lee A., and Kathryn M. all of North Chatham and her beloved dogs, George the Beagle and Jimmy the Chocolate Labrador. She is also survived by three grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren: Ryan A. (Julianne) Andrews, Kennedy and Brody of Carmel, IN; Elizabeth M. (Jen Police) Sanford, Nicolas, Lincoln, and Olivia of Barnstable, MA; and Trevor J. (Ashton) Andrews, Rowan and Sawyer of Wilmington, NC. She is survived by her best friend since sixth grade Kitty Sullivan Newsam of Enfield, CT as well as a host of nieces and nephews. Helen was predeceased by her loving husband in 2008.
Helen was a talented and accomplished tailor/seamstress. She was a wedding fashion designer and her talents were sought after by numerous brides over the years. She not only designed the wedding gowns, she also made the gowns for the entire wedding parties. This allowed her to work from home and raise her children.
For many years Helen taught Adult Education Sewing and Tailoring in the towns of Barnstable, Harwich, and Chatham. She also did alterations for Puritan Clothing Company in Chatham and Dennisport and for Mark, Fore & Strike in Chatham. Helen enjoyed watching her children play and grow. Once her children had grown, Helen expanded her tailoring/alterations and monogramming business and opened up Sea Shell Monograms.
As a former athlete she was her children's number one fan and there was rarely a game that she missed as her children participated on many teams. It was during this time that Helen took up coaching the Chatham High School Cheerleaders and taught figure skating for the Chatham Recreation Department. Bitten by the coaching bug, Helen started coaching at Chatham Middle School. She served as Athletic Director, Field Hockey Coach, and Boys' Basketball Coach. Former basketball player Rusty Laffin dubbed her "Coach Grammy" and from that point forward all her players called her Grammy. She spoiled them rotten with home made cookies on a weekly basis. She was no pushover as a coach and her teams were always competitive. She was a dead eye free throw shooter and when any of the players were struggling from the line she pulled them aside and got them draining their foul shots. She became the "Shot Doctor" and her services were sought after by Middle School Players and Varsity Players alike.
Helen cherished her grandchildren. For many years she would travel round trip Boston to Indiana to Boston in a day so that they got to enjoy family and Cape Cod. Once her grandchildren started their own families she enjoyed frequently traveling to be with her great-grandchildren.
Memorial Visitation will be held Wednesday, January 18, 2023 at 4:00-6:00 PM at Nickerson Funeral Home, 87 Crowell Road, Chatham, MA. A funeral mass celebrating her life will be held Thursday, January 19, 2023 at 10:00 AM at Holy Redeemer Church, 57 Highland Avenue, Chatham, MA.
The family requests that people make donations to: Broad Reach Hospice, 1455 Main Street, Chatham, MA 02633 or to a charity of their choice in lieu of flowers.
Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.nickersonfhchatham.com for the Andrews family.
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