Helen Dickens Chambers

Helen Dickens Chambers, of Powder Springs, Georgia, passed away at her home on June 8th with her daughter Elise by her side. Having just turned 86 on Saturday she had been surrounded over the weekend by her three children, stepchildren, several grandchildren and great grandchildren giving her birthday wishes as well as saying their goodbyes.

Helen was born at home in Adamsville, a community in Southwest Atlanta, Georgia. She was the only daughter and the youngest of two children, to Charles V. Dickens, Sr, a lifelong employee at the REA (Railway Express Agency) in Atlanta and Helen M. Dickens, known to many affectionately as “Meme”. Meme was mostly a stay-at-home mother who also “answered the switchboard” at the REA as well as at Holy Family Hospital. She also contributed articles to the FTD floral magazine for many years. For Helen’s entire childhood and even for a few years after her first marriage, Helen and her family lived on the Dickens’ family property on Gordon Rd (later changed to MLK Blvd) in Adamsville.

Helen attended Margaret Fain Elementary School where she became lifelong best friends with Carol, Jane, Arlene, Pat, and Delores who she affectionately called Wo-Weez. She spent her mornings practicing the piano before school and belonged to the Bluebirds, a junior organization to the Camp Fire Girls. She was a 1954 graduate of Southwest High School. Helen was a very good student, quite popular, and enjoyed all the school dances. She dated many young men during high school, but it was there that she met and later married after graduation, her first love Charles Yarbrough. A couple of years later they started a family beginning with Chuck, followed by Melissa, and then Elise.

Helen started her first job after high school graduation at Rich’s Department Store in downtown Atlanta but by 1957 was expecting her first child and became a full time stay at home mom for many years. In fact, although she had a driver license for many years, she didn’t even drive or have a car until Chuck started attending pre-K at Cascade Heights Methodist Church. Her first car was a black Studebaker Lark. The Lark along with the family station wagon shuttled her young growing family around Southwest Atlanta for many years.

After almost 15 years of marriage, her marriage ended in divorce. Helen was faced with raising three children all under the age of 13 in a new house in East Point, new schools for the kids, and having to return to the workforce. She worked in real estate offices for many years including time with Northside Realty in Sandy Springs and eventually the SE real estate office for Kroger where she worked for 19 years and never missed a day of work before retiring at 62 years of age.

Over the years while raising her three children she dated a little bit but never was serious until she met and fell in love with Charles H. Chambers, Sr. They dated several years, but she would not agree to marry him until all her kids were out of the house. We now know why he so eagerly volunteered to move Elise out of her house so quickly. Charles had 6 children of his own so when they married in 1980, they quickly became a large, blended family. Helen and Charles spent the next 40 years sharing times together traveling, camping, attending various family gatherings, going to many Phi Delta Kappa Fraternity functions both locally as well as around the country, dancing on Saturday nights at the local VFW, and doing most anything to help a family member or a friend. They were inseparable.

Helen always had a smile on her face and a twinkle in her eye. She always put others first. She loved to laugh and always enjoyed telling a good joke, and seldom were they clean. Her mother used to say that Helen would get her crown in heaven because she was so kind, sweet, patient, and thoughtful. We all know that to be true and that she is wearing her well-deserved crown proudly.

Helen was preceded in death by her first husband Charles R Yarbrough, Sr., her second husband Charles H. Chambers, Sr., her parents: Charles V. Dickens, Sr., and Helen M. Dickens, and her brother Charles V. Dickens, Jr.

Helen is survived by eight children: Chuck (Regina) Yarbrough, Melissa Conn, Elise Yarbrough, Linda (Thomas) Ledbetter, Charles H. “Chip” (Peggy) Chambers, Jr., Leah (Barry) Hager, Leslie (Kevin) Champion, SFC Christopher (Tonya) Chambers (Ret.),; fourteen grandchildren: Remi (Zach) Saxon, Chaz Yarbrough, Caden Yarbrough, Shane Conn, Jake Conn, Channing Yarbrough, Paul (Noni) Chambers, Katie (Bronson) Sheffield, SGT Robert Chambers, Jennifer Hager, Sarah Hager, Emily Hager, Charly (Patrick) Hughes, Kristi (Tony Garceau) Champion,; sixteen great-grandchildren: Kambryn and Silas Conn; Kayson Conn; Maddox Yarbrough, Michela Hand, Malachi and Cassie Chambers; Arilynn and Arianna Chambers; Brooklyn Bodie; Jo, Wesley, and Boone Hughes along with three babies due this year; and a host of nieces, nephews, and friends from all facets of her life.

The family would like to gratefully acknowledge Helen’s caregivers through her final year and last days: her daughters Elise and Melissa and the staff of Amedysis Hospice Cartersville, especially her nurses Molly, Daniel, & Susan, as well as their chaplain Father Keith. They were a true Godsend to Helen and her family.

A visitation for family and friends will be held on Saturday, June 11, 2022, at 10:30 AM at Forest Lawn Funeral Home & Memorial Gardens in College Park, GA. A chapel service will be held at 11:30 AM and will be followed by a short graveside service where Helen will be buried next to the graves of her Husband, Mother, Father and Brother.

In lieu of flowers, a donation made be made in memory of Helen D. Chambers to the Parkinson’s Foundation at www.parkinson.org