Helen (Egelston) Rish

Helen (Egelston) Rish, age 88, passed from this life to her new life with the Lord on February 23, 2019. Helen was a loving wife, mother, sister, and grandmother, and a dear friend to many. A caregiver by nature and the eldest of 6 children, Helen first helped to care for her younger siblings, Joe, Pauline, Bob, LaVerne, and Charles, as children. Joe and Pauline preceded her in death. She nurtured her ailing parents as they aged, and she tended to the needs of her husband, William "Bill" Rish, until he passed away in 2008. The two of them were able to spend many enjoyable winters in Florida before he passed.

She loved her only son, Gary, with all her heart, and when he married Patti and they had two daughters (Leanna and Hayley), she carried that love over to them, and later, her great-granddaughter McKinley.

Helen seemed to know everyone in her lifelong home of Hamilton. Luncheons with her former classmates were events she looked forward to monthly. She had many friends who picked her up for meals and activities, and her neighbors and church family at St. Charles United Methodist Church loved her dearly. She was involved in many church activities. She had a bubbly and independent spirit and always had a story to share.

After a bad fall in 2017, she moved up to the Toledo area with Gary and Patti and made many friends there. But her heart was in Hamilton, and eventually she moved back to the Woodlands of Hamilton for 7 months. Sadly, she suffered a stroke in late October of 2018, and she moved back to the Toledo area for rehab and long term care. Gary and his family spent time with her every day, and although she was very ill, she enjoyed the days with her family.

Left to cherish her memory are her son, Gary, his wife, Patti, granddaughters Leanna (Adrian Alati) and Hayley, and great-granddaughter McKinley Alati. In addition, special siblings Bob (Joyce) Egelson, Charles (Joyce) Egelston, LaVerne (Eugene) Carr, and many dear nieces and nephews are mourning her loss.

Funeral services will be held Thursday, February 28, 2019 at Brown-Dawson Funeral Home, 1350 Millville Ave., Hamilton at 6:00 PM with Pastor Andy Zinsmeister officiating. Visitation will be held from from 4:00 PM -6:00 PM at the funeral home on Thursday, February 28, 2019.