Helen Cunningham passed away at home in Boonton on June 20, 2020 of natural causes.
Helen was born at All Souls Hospital in Morristown on August 4, 1925. She was a long time resident of Boonton, attending Our Lady of Mount Carmel school through the eighth grade.
Miss Cunningham continued her education at Boonton High School, graduating in 1942. She was accepted at Newark State Teacher’s College in Newark (now Kean University). In her four years at NSTC, Helen was a member of Alpha Theta Pi, a social sorority. In her junior year, she was elected to Kappa Delta Pi, the National Honor Society in Education. Upon graduation in June of 1946, Helen secured a position at Brookdale Avenue School in Verona. Over the years, she taught third, fourth and finally, fifth grades. She retired in 1982 due to a family illness.
Helen and her sister Marie were enthusiastic travelers, visiting all 50 of the United States, and all of the Canadian provinces, mainly by car. In total, they visited more than 75 countries in their travels to Europe, South America, Asia and Africa. Their longest journey came when they embarked on a world cruise lasting 106 days. Along with travel and teaching, Helen gained her MA in Education at Paterson University in Wayne. She and Marie maintained a wide circle of friends and fellow travelers throughout their lives. Helen started her day with practice on one of several languages she was interested in, and was an avid reader, visiting the Mountain Lakes library weekly.Helen is survived by cousins in the Hull and O’Grady families, plus numerous to her relatives throughout New Jersey.
Arrangements for burial are at the Dangler, Lewis and Carey Funeral Home, 312 West Main St, Boonton. A Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated at Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church, 910 Birch St in Boonton, on Saturday, June 27. Interment followed at St. Mary’s Cemetery, Wootton at Green St. in Boonton.
