FITZPATRICK, Helen Jean

Helen Jean Fitzpatrick Age 86 years Helen Jean “Jean” Fitzpatrick died Dec 28th in Austin, Texas. Jean was the wife of Dr. John Edward “Ed” Fitzpatrick Jr. and the daughter of the late Dr. Emmett and Catherine (Heafey) McMahon. Jean and her three sisters—Catherine Rose, Mary Margaret and Colleen McMahon—were raised in St. Bridget Parish in Omaha. The McMahon family moved to Santa Monica, California, for about a year and returned to Omaha where they belonged to St. Cecilia Cathedral Parish. Jean attended Duchesne Academy and College. After graduating from college, Jean worked for the Union Pacific Railroad. Jean married John Edward “Ed” Fitzpatrick on Sept. 16, 1950, in St. Cecilia Cathedral Parish, where Jean’s funeral will be held on Jan. 3, 2015. Jean and Ed were married for 64 years. Jean and Ed were members of St. Margaret Mary Parish in Omaha before moving to Grand Island, Nebraska, in 1965, where Ed was chief of surgery at the Veterans Administration Hospital. In Grand Island, Jean was a tireless volunteer for the Blessed Sacrament Church and School and, later, for Central Catholic High School. She also served on the Central Catholic school board. In the early 1980s, she was a reporter for the West Nebraska Register, a newspaper for the Diocese of Grand Island. She also was founding editor of the Blessed Sacrament Parish newspaper, The Trend. Jean supported the dreams and aspirations of her children and opened her home to a wide variety of friends. Jean was an avid sportswoman who loved tennis, ice skating and swimming. She and Ed held family gatherings at Lake Okoboji, Iowa, for two generations. The trips were similar to the McMahon family trips to Lake Miltona, Minn., when Jean was young. Jean and Ed began downhill skiing when their older children were in high school. They held family gatherings at Breckenridge, Colorado, annually for about 25 years. They also cross-country skied in Colorado and Nebraska. Jean and Ed returned to Omaha in 1991 when Ed retired, and reconnected with treasured, lifelong friends. They were members of St. Wenceslaus Parish. Jean continued her active lifestyle, playing tennis in a league, walking and skiing. She and Ed also continued church volunteer work and helped with senior activities at Bergen Mercy Care Center. Jean and Ed moved to the Austin, Texas, area in May of 2014. Jean is survived by her husband, Ed, and four children: Rosemary Fitzpatrick of Stuart, Florida, Jean Fitzpatrick of Kansas City, Missouri, John Fitzpatrick of Kansas City, Missouri, and Margi Gallo of Austin, Texas; son-in-law Andrew Gallo; daughter-in-law, Laura Fitzpatrick; grandchildren: Grant and Gabrielle Gallo, and Katarina, Ciaran and Isabel Fitzpatrick. She also is survived by her sisters Colleen McMahon of Omaha and Sr. Catherine McMahon, RSCJ, of Atherton, California. She was preceded in death by her parents and by her sister, Sr. Mary McMahon, RSCJ. Memorials can be made toward the care of elderly sisters of the Religious of the Sacred Heart of Jesus at: Society of the Sacred Heart, 4120 Forest Park Ave., St. Louis, Missouri, 63108. Please specify: “Oakwood Retirement Center.” VISITATION begins Friday, January 2nd at 5pm, with VIGIL SERVICE to follow at 7pm, all at the West Center Chapel. SERVICES Saturday, January 3rd at 10am at St. Cecilia Cathedral. Interment, Calvary Cemetery.

HEAFEY-HEAFEY-HOFFMANN DWORAK & CUTLER Mortuaries and Crematories 7805 West Center Road Omaha, Nebraska 68124 (402) 391-3900