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MASISAK HELEN CATHERINE (GERDICH) On April 27, 1929, Helen Masisak was born in the tiny mining town of Coverdale, PA, and she passed away on Saturday, April 21, 2018. In between, she never lived more than four blocks away from the tar paper and shingle shack in which she was born, yet she did so much, touched so many, and had about as much life, love, and laughter as anyone could hope for. Her family survived the Great Depression, parents and seven kids all living together in that tiny home, supplementing the small pay her father earned working 14 hours a day in mine shafts, where he couldn't even stand upright, by working a tiny field of crops and raising a cow and some chickens where now stands the Bethel Park High School Stadium. Helen was an excellent student, and was so good in penmanship class that, 35 years later, her teacher told her youngest son that it was incredible how bad your penmanship is, since your mother had the best handwriting of any student in my 50 years of teaching! From the time she was a small child, Helen dreamed of becoming a teacher, marrying a man named Bob, having two children named Bobby and Becky, and having her kids and grandchildren visit her every Sunday. She was almost entirely successful at achieving those life goals, becoming a beloved teacher's aide at Lincoln School for over 30 years, marrying a man named Bob, and having two children she called Bobby & Becky
and a Billy, for good measure and each of them got even with her by changing to different names as adults! Helen was a devoted mother: there was never a birthday or holiday that wasn't a major event. Parties for the kidscomplete with homemade games like pick up the cotton balls with chopsticks or drop clothespins in the milk bottlenew outfits and filled Easter baskets, elaborate homemade costumes for Halloween, 30 homemade items on the menu for Thanksgiving (including endless early morning hours with a hand-grinder and wood roller, making her version of her mother's world-famous nut roll), a fully-decked Christmas tree with piles of presentsall of this despite living on next to nothing. Speaking of costumes, Helen and her good friend Eleanor 'Boots' Mercer were local legends who spent decades dreaming up incredible, 1st place worthy costumes. Her kids were decked in homemade Mr. Peanut, a cow, or George Washington outfits, and Helen, herself, would boldly wear an Uncle Sam or a Statue Of Liberty costume, even when it wasn't an official costume event! Helen and her sister Mayo shared an incredible love of movies and character actors, culled from their Depression years going to double features in the 1930s at the 10-cent Colonial Theater on South Park Road. Then, in the 60s and 70s, the Pittsburgh Press used to have a contest where they printed 100 tiny photos and entries had to fill in as many names of character actors as possible. In the age long before the internet, the two sisters would pore over the photos for a week with a magnifying glass and try to decide (argue vociferously about) who was whom. They won twiceonce getting all 100 correctand eventually were banned from competing any more, to their great chagrin. She was IMDB before there was such a thing. They say when a great person dies, a library burns to the ground
and this couldn't be more true in this case. Over the many decades as part of the local community, Helen became a local historian, responsible for collecting the names of the original Coverdale Mine Memorial families and erecting the monument honoring them; she was the kind of person who knew the history of local families, businesses, school, politics, and landmarks better than even the principals, themselves. She collected photographs and memorabilia from decades of local events and could name all the faces and places, even from 70 years earlier. She read or had read to her in her later blindness over 60 years' worth of local obituaries, which she enjoyed fanatically until the very end (putting a lot of pressure on getting this particular obit right!). Helen's great superpower, though, was singing. She loved all kinds of music, from Tin Pan Alley hits to commercial jingles to children's songs, and would sing all day, whenever she could. Although she had a beautiful singing voice, she was most renowned for her devotion to singing harmony with anyone and anywhereshe had a beautiful voice but never wanted to sing the melody. If you were at the ballgame and you heard harmony to the Star-Spangled Banner and Take Me Out To The Ballgame, it was probably Helen. That is devotion! Helen was passionate about a lot of things, but one of the highest on the list was her love of Croatian heritage and its Tamburitza music. She and her kids spent decades going to Croatian music dances and festivals. Helen was also a devoted listener to Mike Hegol's Sunday afternoon radio show, listening to it every Sunday for 20 years. She became a fixture at the Yukon Croatian Club, the Schuetzen Park picnics, and the Croatian Fraternal Union events. There isn't a local Tamburitza musician who didn't know and love the woman who sang all the songs, loved to kolo dance, and was a huge part of their shows. Helen loved swimming at the old Corrigan Drive and Stone Manse pools, softball with the kids, and especially volleyball. Along with various recreation meetups, she was a charter member of the Bethel Park Volleyball Girls Club, who played and won many tournaments together, and became lifelong friends. When the game was on the line, even into her 60s, Helen would make a very determined face and use her considerable upper body strength to hit the winning shot. She loved wordplay and 'Dad' jokes. She also did crossword puzzles every day, even when she became blind and had to essentially do them in her head. Into her 80s! She was a former Judge of Elections Judge for the Allegheny County Board of Elections, a member of the Bob Locklin Singers and the Bethel Presbyterian Church Choir, and was a volunteer at the Gold Card Club where she earned lifetime membership. Daughter of the late Teresa Hasan Gerdich and the late Ante Gerdich; sister of six who preceded her in death: The late Barbara Bernardini (Jim), Steve Radnick, George Radnick, Ann Senovich (Nick), Mary 'Mayo' Radnick, and Anthony Gerdich (Eleanor). Survived by three loving and loved children: Robert 'Zack' (Maria), Rebecca (Leszek), and Wil (Emily); one grandchild, Shirl Ann (Masisak) Cummings; sister-in-law, Hazel Hartman (Masisak); and many wonderful nieces and nephews. In the end, she had a long and amazing journey, and no regrets. She was brave, peaceful and surrounded by her loved ones and caring souls. She leaves behind an incredible void in all her communities, with many friends, and most definitely for her loving family that will be impossible to fill. Funeral arrangements by BEINHAUER - CONNELL. Friends and Family are welcome at 5120 W. Library Ave., Bethel Park 412-835-7950 on Friday 2-8pm and Saturday 9am-1030am. A Funeral Service will be held Saturday 11am at Bethel Baptist Church, 2899 Cherry St., Bethel Park. Interment to follow in Bethel Cemetery. Flowers are appreciated, or donations to the CFU Yukon Croatian Club at 109 Union St., Yukon, PA 15698. Please add or view tributes at: www.beinhauer.com Send condolences post-gazette.com/gb
