Helga was very much a people person. I remember when I first met her, it was late 1999 and my unit was still under construction. I came by to see how the job is progressing and I ran into Helga. She was planting some flowers and stopped what she was doing to chat with me. I learned that we both are from Europe and we both survived World War II, so we had a lot in common to talk about. When I finally moved in, in April of 2000 Helga took me under her wing. She showed me places like the library, the museum, stores and so on. She introduced me to a group of German ladies, I was the only Polish member in the group but they were very welcoming. We had a lot of fun together. Getting lunch, night swimming at one of the ladies' private pool, and going for hikes. We walked every day, I was pushing a stroller with my granddaughter with one hand and walking my dog Lucky with the other hand.
Later on when we were both less physically active, Helga and I always attended the operas transmitted from the New York Metropolitan Opera.
She was a great friend and someone you can always count on. We miss her.
Love, Ilona.