Mrs. Helene Corinne Dusseault Fox, 95, passed away peacefully on June 20, 2020, at Brian Center in Lincolnton, N.C. Helene, one of six children, was born in Manchester, N.H., on August 18, 1924, daughter of the late Aime Eugene and Marie Antoinette Lessard Dusseault.
Henry (Bill) Fox of Mooresville, N.C., captured her heart on a snowy day on February 19, 1945. They wrote many letters during World War II and got married on New Year’s Eve of 1947. Bill wanted to return to his roots, so they moved to Mooresville in 1961, and he eventually retired from the U.S. Air Force in 1965. She embraced the small town it once was, and it became her home for 48 years. Helene was an active teacher’s aide at South Elementary School for ten years, loved spending time with the children there, and would have made a great teacher. She was a devoted and longtime volunteer at the local nursing homes in town. She had a way with children and the elderly. Helene was an avid reader and donated many of her books to others.
Most of all, she loved to travel with Bill on Elderhostel trips within the U.S., and they took many cruises. She always kept her suitcase packed, so she could be ready to go in a moment’s notice. Fluent in French due to her French Canadian/American ancestry, Helene visited over 45 foreign countries and six continents. In their early working life, both her daughters were flight attendants who presented her with the opportunity to travel with them and create many memorable experiences. She was also a substitute French teacher for Mooresville High School because she was the only other person town who could speak French. She was an active and loyal member of St. Therese Church in Mooresville for more than 50 years.
Her children remember her lovingly as a mother who never sent her children to school without breakfast, always helped them with their homework, and made the best fudge. Helene had a great sense of humor, loved a good joke, and was the party’s life. She was known for her marvelous ability to meet and remember people, leaving strangers with the warm and comfortable feeling that they had acquired a new friend. She was an expert seamstress and could take a size 20 dress and alter it to a size 8 in no time. For many winters, in their retirement, she and Bill enjoyed spending time at their condo in West Palm Beach near their daughter, Kathryn. They enjoyed their walks on the beach, playing poker, and relaxing in their back yard. Helene volunteered at a local Catholic thrift store and furnished their condo “on a dime,” as she used to say. In 2009, she and Bill moved to Lincolnton, where they resided within assisted living for many enjoyable years. There, they enjoyed watching movies, playing bingo and maintained their independence and zest for life. She and Bill enjoyed an extraordinary relationship, and they were married for more than 70 years before his passing in 2018.
She was preceded in death by her husband, Henry (Bill) Fox; first daughter, Ann Joyce Fox; and her youngest daughter, Carolyn Marie Fox. Survivors include her sister, Louise Doherty of Manchester, N.H.; her brother, Henry Dusseault of Panama City, Fla.; her daughter, Evelyn Fox Ross (Jim) of Lincolnton, N.C.; her daughter, Kathryn Fox-Winokur of West Palm Beach, Fla.; her son, Col. (Retired) Don Fox (Jeanette) of St. Simons Island, Ga; and her grandson, Army 1st Lt. Henry Clayton Fox, who is assigned to Ft. Campbell, Ky.
The family would like to thank Carolina Caring for their compassionate care. Additionally, the caring and loving staff at Brian Center of Lincolnton, where Helene resided for the past two years, truly enhanced her quality of life.
In place of flowers, the Fox family asks that you donate to either St. Therese Catholic Church, 217 Brawley School Road, Mooresville, NC 28117 or St. Dorothy Catholic Church, 148 St. Dorothy Lane, Lincolnton, NC 28092. There will be a private graveside funeral for family members at Glenwood Memorial Park in Mooresville on June 22, 2020.
Cavin-Cook Funeral Home, Mooresville, is serving the Fox family. Condolences may be sent to the family at www.cavin-cook.com.