Helen M. Gutierrez

It is with heavy hearts that we announce the passing of our beloved mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother, Helen Munoz Gutierrez, who left us peacefully at the age of 90. Our matriarch and queen of our extensive, family, she was a true force of life, touching everyone she encountered with her boundless love, laughter, stories, and strength.

Born in Barstow, Texas, in 1935, Helen dedicated her professional life to nursing, where her compassionate spirit brought comfort to countless patients and many babies into the world as a Labor and Delivery nurse over the course of 43 years. But it was in her life as a mother that her spirit truly shone. She lovingly but strictly raised six children and one grandson. Helen was blessed with 51 grandchildren and great-grandchildren, each of whom felt the warmth of her affection.

Her home was always the heart of family life, filled with the delicious smells of her legendary cooking: enchiladas, famous tortillas, tamales, steak picao and chili colorado. When not in the kitchen, she could often be found dancing with Dad at some family function, with a mischievous glint in her eye or her hands busy creating beautiful crafts. Oh, how she loved to craft! She approached every challenge with the fierce tenacity of a lioness and had a wonderfully sneaky, funny sense of humor that kept everyone on their toes. She was a master storyteller, and her words of wisdom will continue to guide us forever.

A commemoration of her incredible life will be as follows: Rosery - Friday, October 17th, at Forest Lawn Cypress, at 5 pm. Funeral- Saturday, October 18, at 9:30 am at St. Cornelius Catholic Church, 5500 E. Wardlow Road, Long Beach, CA. All who knew and loved her are invited to attend.

We will miss her deeply, but her spirit, a beautiful tapestry woven with love, resilience, and laughter, will live on in all of us as we practice faith in Jesus, keeping family united along with our culture and traditions. Farewell, our Queen, till we meet again.