Helga B. Gongaware

Helga Gongaware, age 78, of Lubbock, Texas passed away on Friday, June 30, 2023. She was born in Bad Bergzabern, Germany, on August 20, 1944. In about 1962, she met an American Army soldier on a blind date, and on January 11, 1964, she married that soldier, Eugene Emerson Gongaware. As an Army family, they and their three children (Mike, Wayne, and Sherry) were stationed in places such as El Paso, Texas; Kaiserslautern, Germany; and Fort Knox, Kentucky. They finally settled in Lubbock in 1978.

Helga worked at the Lubbock State School where she worked in Staff Development. During her tenure she met Julia, a client of the state school, and Helga became her legal guardian. Julia basically was another member of the family. After leaving the Lubbock State School, Helga was the Human Rights officer at the Lubbock Regional Mental Health and Mental Retardation (MHMR) Center, now called StarCare. While there she met her best friend, Pat Meier. She retired 20-plus years with the center.

While she worked, Helga also continued her education. She received an Associate’s Degree at South Plains College, then a Bachelor’s Degree at Wayland Baptist University in behavioral health, and finally earning a Master’s Degree from WBU in Adult Education.

Helga loved to travel, and returned to Germany to visit her family. When her German family came to Lubbock for their holiday, they drove together to places such as the Grand Canyon, Yosemite National Park, and Devil’s Tower, and, of course, destinations in Texas. She and Pat took trips together on a cruise to Alaska and Canada, and in Europe to cities such as Vienna, Austria, Budapest, Hungary, Dublin, Ireland, and Barcelona, Spain.

Helga is survived by two of her children, Wayne Gongaware and Sherry Gongaware; two grandchildren, Christopher Gongaware (Christiane Gongaware) and Chad Gongaware (Megan Gongaware); two great-grandchildren, Adeline Gongaware and Georgia Gongaware; and numerous nieces, nephews, and family members.

It was Helga’s wishes that there be no memorial or funeral. Please, in lieu of flowers, donate blood to your local blood bank, or make monetary donations to your local Meals On Wheels charity.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.resthavenfuneralhome.com for the Gongaware family.