Helen Marie Candelaria passed away on Saturday, Aug. 29, 2015. She was 79 years young.
She was born Oct. 31, 1935, in Cornfields to Dudley B. Nez and Effie Baldwin.
Helen quit school soon after her mother passed away to care for her sister, Lucy, and two brothers, Willford and baby brother Willard. She worked hard to keep her brothers and sister together and in school.
She met her husband Victor in 1950 and their first date was at the Brown Jug Café in Winslow. Helen and Victor were married on Oct. 30, 1954, and they had four children while raising her baby brother. They were married for 60 years.
They moved their family from Winslow to Phoenix in 1962 and in June 1965, they moved to Page.
Helen worked for her sister at Norge Cleaners & Laundromat, and at the Steakhouse as a cook before working at Page Hospital as a nurse’s aide for Dr. Washburn and Dr. Kazan. She was an excellent caregiver and had incredible bedside manners. Patients, co-workers and doctors loved her.
She loved the outdoors, loved going home to see her dad, Dudley, and Grandmother May in Jeddito and Dilkon. She loved raising her kids and supporting all their sports and activities. She loved bowling, enjoyed the heck out of playing Bingo and liked to throw a line in Lake Powell once in awhile, where she spent a lot of her early years with kids and family.
At the age of 61 she started to raise her grandson, Roman S. Candelaria from 9 months old and saw him graduate from Page High School. She loved Roman very much, but most of all she loved her husband of 60 years, Victor S. Candelaria. He was her king, she was his queen. They were in love!
Helen was a wonderful daughter, sister, aunt, mother-in-law, grandma and an unforgettable, awesome mother. She loved her six grandchildren and her eight great-grandchildren with passion, love and care.
She will be missed by those who knew her.
Survivors include her children, Victoria Rogers of LeChee, Gabriel Candelaria of LeChee, Ted & Theresa Candelaria of Page, and Roman S. Candelaria of LeChee; her sister, Lucy (Fred) Baker of Prescott; her brothers, Wilford (Mary) Nez of Albuquerque, N.M., and Willard (Pam) Nez of Glendale; her grandchildren, Shelly Nez of Phoenix, Jason (Monica) Rogers of Edenburg, Texas, Kris Rogers of Memphis, Tenn., Dahryn Candelaria of Sterling, Colo., Darby (Andrew) Cisneros of Fruita, Colo., and Daley (fiancé Jena GreyEyes) Candelaria of Page; her great-grandchildren, MacKensy and Mikalynn Candelaria, Jace and Avery Rogers, Holden and Hayle Rogers, Kye Cisneros and her newest great-granddaughter, Paige Candelaria.
She was preceded in death by her parents; her husband, Victor Candelaria; her daughter, Yvonne Candelaria; and her son-in-law, Ladd Rogers.
Mosdell Mortuary of Kanab, Utah, was in charge of the arrangements.
