Helen Bass Bourgoyne's Obituary
Helen Ruth Bass Bourgoyne lived one hundred years before passing on November 14, 2022. Known for her contagious smile, Helen Ruth was as persevering as she was optimistic. She not only had an outer positivity, but also drew from a deep well of faith. Early on, her prayer for her children was that they, too, would live joy-filled lives of faith, regardless of their circumstances.
Helen Ruth excelled in school. At the end of her fifth-grade year, it was recommended that she skip the sixth grade and move straight to seventh. She was active in various school clubs and played the piano. Helen Ruth described herself as more serious growing up. However, on a more playful note, she wrote her diary in French to keep her thoughts private. Years later, she laughed when she could not read what she had written.
As a rural Tennessee teen, Helen Ruth traveled to Hollywood as Miss Seventeen, where she met some of the current day movie stars. Over the years, and with her genuine interest in other people, she turned the spotlight outward. Her life-long intention was to brighten the lives of others.
Most people who knew Helen Ruth received an annual birthday call and card. Often these cards came with a photo of a shared event. She loved special occasions and this was her way of celebrating people and reminding each one that their life mattered.
Helen Ruth enjoyed making history, too. After graduating from the University of Memphis, with a degree in English, and Peabody (Vanderbilt), with a second degree in math, she taught school. While scientists, in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, worked on the atomic bomb, Helen Ruth taught their children. Ironically, though Helen Ruth skipped sixth grade, she taught sixth grade.
Still, life would not have been complete for her without a good love story. At twenty-four, Helen Ruth met Dr. J. Roy Bourgoyne in Memphis, TN, where they lived a full forty-eight years of life together, before his passing. In exciting times and especially on the ordinary days, Helen Ruth and Roy modeled how to both nurture individuality and live in community.
Each morning over breakfast, Helen Ruth would quote Psalm 118:24, “This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.” One of her own most recent quotes: “I love people! Going to church and being with my church family starts each week off right.”
Several groups of women brought Helen Ruth fulfillment. In college, she was president of her sorority (Phi Mu). Later she served in various roles in Dental Auxiliary, Coterie, Women of Faith and the Mary Galloway Home.
Helen Ruth’s spirit lives on in her friends and more specifically, her children and grandchildren, Layne Bourgoyne of New York, Lisa Helen Baker (Jim) of New Mexico, René Stephen (wife, Lisa and son, Lucas) of Texas and Laura Jean Harmon (Craig, husband deceased, son, Jackson and daughter, Julia Rose) of South Carolina.
A Memorial Service will be held at First Baptist Church, Memphis, Tennessee, on Saturday, June 17, 2023 at 10:00 A.M. Visitation will be at 9:00 A.M. in the church parlor.
The family requests that memorials be sent to First Baptist Church of Memphis, Tennessee, Children’s Museum of Memphis (Dental Exhibit), St. Jude or Memphis Dental Society (Charitable Fund for Mission of Mercy).
What’s your fondest memory of Helen?
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Share a story where Helen's kindness touched your heart.
Describe a day with Helen you’ll never forget.
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