Helen L. Elias

Helen (Beatrice) Larson Elias – wife, mother, grandmother and educator, and a resident of Ithaca for many years – passed away February 1, 2021 at the age of 94 in Ithaca, New York. She was born in New Bedford, Massachusetts, on January 29, 1927, to Arthur and Mildred Larson. Her childhood was spent in New Bedford, where she and her sisters Virginia and Florence were raised among extended family and friends after her father’s early death. Her initials – HB – became a nickname – first “Honey Bee” and then simply “Buzz”. The latter stayed with her through college and the rest of her life.

After graduating from high school, she attended Cornell University, where she received her BA degree and met her husband, Robert, then a young instructor in the English department. They were married Friday, June 13, 1947 – a choice of date that all those who knew them found entirely in character. Their four children, Jonathan, Abigail, Sara and Eben, were born and raised in Ithaca. They all have memories of growing up in a household that encouraged creativity, even if it meant stepping over or around elaborate arrangements of building blocks or drying paintings. Helen also found time to assist her husband with tasks such as reading page proofs, and to develop personal interests such as the piano and singing in the chorus. After her children were in bed, they would often fall asleep to the sounds of her piano practice.

When her children were older, she returned to school and obtained a master’s degree, and then began working as a part-time instructor at Cornell until Robert’s retirement in 1979.

Following retirement, Helen and Robert moved to Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts, where they had spent many summers with their children, friends, and relatives. After 16 years on the Vineyard, they decided to “downsize” and moved off-island to the Cape, where they lived for a decade before moving to Brookline, Massachusetts in 2007. They travelled often, exploring Italy and Great Britain many times, as well as Malta, North Cyprus, and Greece (including Corfu). They spent several seasons excavating Iron Age sites in Wales and one season on a Viking site on the Island of Gotland. They also traveled to Mexico, Peru, and Chile. Closer to home, they visited sites in the American Southwest and Midwest, and made frequent visits to children and grandchildren. At home, they studied Italian to join a group reading Dante in his original language and worked with groups providing tutoring in the community. Helen spent many hours helping people with their English language skills. In addition, both taught in the Nathan Mayhew seminars on the Vineyard for several years.

Robert passed away in 2008, and Helen lived by herself in Brookline for a few more years until returning to Ithaca to be closer to family.

She is survived by her children Jonathan, Abigail, Sara, and Eben, nine grandchildren, and a great-grand-daughter. We will all miss someone who was a mother, homemaker, teacher, and at the same time a strong-willed and independent woman.