June 19, 2001 ― September 20, 2021

Although all of us face a mortal life, the inevitability of that fact came all too soon when the heart of Helena Francine Nicole (Berger) Wheeler failed to sustain the life that brought such joy and happiness to the friends and family who loved her so much. She was 20, and was surrounded by the great doctors and nurses at The University of Kansas Hospital and her mother, Cynthia Wheeler Westbrook, and stepfather, David Westbrook, at the time of her passing.

Too often, obituaries written about a life long-lived concentrate on credentials rather than character. If character is truly what counts, then there is no credential stronger than the character Helena brought to the way she lived her life. She truly expressed unconditional love for the people she knew and compassion for the injustices encountered by people she didn’t. Her sensitivity to the needs of others caused her eyes to glisten as her smile brought encouragement when times were tough, and celebration when a great milestone down life’s long path was achieved. Yet for Helena, life would not be a long run, but rather a short sprint to which she brought the energy, enthusiasm and commitment of a champion.

Whether dancing in The Nutcracker Suite or in the family room; whether listening to the music she loved through her earbuds or performing it with her flute; whether reading great literature or taking a respectable crack at writing it herself, Helena brought to all of life’s experiences great courage ― the same courage she brought to her battle with the heart disease she fought so hard to overcome and that she accepted so gracefully and peacefully at the end.

In addition to her mother and stepfather, Helena leaves behind her sisters, Haley Linden and Robin Berger, her grandparents Helen and Jesse Wheeler of Trimble, MO, and her cousins Alia Krzyzanowski (and her husband, Kolbe Krzyzanowski), and Jasmine Wheeler (and her husband, Denis Mezentsev), along with many other family members, friends and classmates.

A graduate of St. Teresa’s Academy, Helena held an associate degree from Stephens College in Columbia, Missouri, and was enrolled this fall to pursue her academic work in Communication Arts at the University of Missouri-Kansas City. She loved her summers serving as a volunteer at Jerusalem Farm, working with students at Theater of the Imagination, taking care of customers at Starbucks coffee shops, and sharing her mixec-media art with friends, fellow students and faculty, who admired that work so much. She will be missed by those who knew and loved her, and her many yet-unrealized contributions will be missed by those who did not.

In lieu of flowers, the family suggests a memorial donation to Helena’s Memorial Fund administered by the Greater Kansas City Community Foundation. The contributions will be used to fund scholarships for students enrolled in higher education. Please make checks payable to the Greater Kansas City Community Foundation, write “Helena’s Memorial Fund” on the memo line, and mail the check to the Greater Kansas City Community Foundation, 1055 Broadway Blvd., Suite 130, Kansas City, MO 64105.

A visitation for family and friends will be held from 11:00 a.m. to noon, with a memorial service at noon, on Saturday, October 2, 2021, in the main chapel of the Country Club Plaza Christian Church, 6101 Ward Parkway, Kansas City, MO.