HOLYOKE – Helen M. (Pysz) Hamel, of Holyoke, was Called Safely Home on Thursday, April 5, 2012. She passed into Eternal Life at Mount Saint Vincent Care Center in Holyoke, surrounded by the care and comfort of her loving family and her wonderful caregivers. She was born in Waterford, NY on December 1, 1918, a beloved daughter of the late Joseph and Mary (Wojcik) Pysz. She graduated from Mater Dolorosa Elementary School, attended Holyoke High School and lived in Holyoke and South Hadley for many years. She was last employed as a supervisor at the former Steiger’s Department Store in Holyoke and retired in 1981. She was a communicant of the former Mater Dolorosa Church and currently a communicant of Our Lady of the Cross Church in Holyoke. She was predeceased by her husband, Theodore “Ted” A. Hamel, Sr., who was Called Home on January 10, 1989. She leaves: her three children, Joan H. Welch of Holyoke, Doris A. Sparko and her husband, David, and Theodore “Ted” A. Hamel, Jr. and his wife, Barbara, all of South Hadley; nine grandchildren, John Javorski and his wife, Ileana, of Bradenton, FL, Karen M. Lasante and her husband, Eric, Jennifer A. Arble and her husband, William, and Matthew S. Ernst and his wife, Allison, all of Holyoke, Jessica A. Randall and her husband, George, of Granby, Erin M. Sparko-Killian and her husband, Matthew, of South Hadley, Annalise Hamel of South Hadley, Michelle Sergneri and her husband, Paul, and Melissa Thomas and her husband, John, all of Chicopee; 17 great grandchildren; her brother, Thaddeus “Ted” M. Pysz and his wife, Helen, of Cheektowaga, NY; her two sisters-in-law, Edna Pysz of Holyoke, MA and Dorothy Pyser of Wilbraham, MA; and many nephews and nieces. Besides her husband, she was predeceased by: her son, Stanley Hamel; her daughter, Barbara Javorski; her twin brother, Stanley Pysz; her sister, Sophie A. Fulponi; her brothers, Joseph P. Pysz and Philip C. Pyser; and her sons- in-law, Thomas Javorski and James J. Welch. Her funeral will be held on Thursday, April 12, 2012 beginning at the St. Pierre - Phaneuf Aldenville Chapels, (413-532-9806), 13 Dale Street, Chicopee, MA 01020 (funeral home will open at 8:30 a.m.) followed by a Mass of Christian Burial at 10 a.m. in Our Lady of the Cross Church, 23 Sycamore Street, Holyoke, MA 01040. Her burial will follow the Mass at Mater Dolorosa Cemetery, Pittroff Avenue, South Hadley, MA 01075. Her family will receive friends at the funeral home on Wednesday, April 11, 2012 from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. The parking lot and main entrance are located in the rear of the funeral home at 20 Lafayette Street, Chicopee, MA 01020. Her family has requested that memorial donations be made in her memory to Mater Dolorosa School, 25 Maple Street, Holyoke, MA 01040 or the Residents Council Mount Saint Vincent, 35 Holy Family Road, Holyoke, MA 01040. For our online obituary and guest book, please visit www.stpierrephaneuf.com