Helen Foster Cunha

Jamestown, RI- Helen Foster Cunha, In her 94thyear, of Jamestown, RI, died Saturday, January 7, 2012 at Newport Hospital, Newport, RI after a brief illness. She was the wife of the late Manuel Cunha Jr.Born in Worcester, MA on June 26, 1918, she was the daughter of the late David and Edith Masterson Foster. Helen grew up in Providence and graduated from Hope High School. As a young woman she worked at Harris Lumber Co in Providence. In 1942, she married Manuel Cunha Jr. and they moved to Jamestown, RI. Helen lived in Jamestown for the next 70 years, raising her family and was a communicant of St. Mark Church. For years she was active in the Rosary Sodality at St. Mark. Soon she returned to work with a position at the Jamestown-Newport Ferry office in Jamestown. Her career then brought her to URI where she spent the next 20 years working in several offices including the Library, ROTC, Fiscal Plant, and the Loans and Grants office.After her retirement, she and her husband spent winters in West Palm Beach, FL and enjoyed traveling extensively. Helen was proud to be living independently in her home well into her 90s, and enjoyed time at the Jamestown Senior Center.She is survived by her daughter Barbara E .Cunha of Jamestown, RI, her nieces Janice Vadnais and Jean Amaral and nephew James Foster, all of Warwick, RI, and her beloved grand-dog Mickey. She was preceded in death by her brother James Foster of Warwick, RI.Her funeral will be held on Saturday, January 14, 2012 with a Mass of Christian Burial at 10:00am in St. John Neumann Church, 157 Middleboro Road, East Freetown, MA. Burial will follow at 3:00pm in St. Mark Cemetery, East Shore Rd, Jamestown, RI.Memorial donations may be made to Jamestown EMS, 11 Knowles Ct, Jamestown, RI 02835 or the Jamestown Philomenian Library, North Road, Jamestown, RI 02835.