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Helen Jean (Moss) Potsus

Helen Jean (Moss) Potsus died Thursday, Oct. 13, 2016, at the age of 77.

She was born in Reedy, W.Va., on July 17, 1939, to the late Glenn Moss and Opal (Fore) Moss. She was the third youngest of seven children.

She was the wife of Robert Potsus of Newtown, Conn., and mother of Whitney Potsus of Shelton, Conn. She also is survived by her brother, Glenn Moss of Parkersburg, W.Va.; her sister, Mary (Moss) Evans of Parkersburg, W.Va; her sister, June (Moss) Holub of Gahanna, Ohio; her sister, Geneva (Moss) Flesher of Reedy, W.Va.; and several nieces and nephews in West Virginia, Ohio and Maryland.

She is preceded in death by her sister, Darlene (Moss) Scott of Spencer, W.Va.; her sister, Naomi (Moss) Caufman of Cincinnati, Ohio; and several nieces and nephews.

Mrs. Potsus served as a U.S. Air Force medic from 1962 to 1966, in the 642nd USAF Dispensary of the Air Defense Command (ADC) in Syracuse, N.Y.; she was an Airman First Class (a rank now called Sergeant) when she discharged in 1966. She and her husband met while both were stationed in Syracuse, and had just had their 50th wedding anniversary in August. After the Air Force, she worked as a dental assistant before spending more than a decade as a devoted stay-at-home mother. She worked for more than 20 years in eldercare, first as a nurse’s aide at River Glen Health Care Home in Southbury, Conn., and then as a home health aide with the Southbury Visiting Nurse Association.

Mrs. Potsus was a voracious reader, animal lover and prolific sewer who had made everything from doll clothes to school clothes to patchwork quilts. True to her Appalachian roots, she was also a gifted oral storyteller with a long memory. A natural born and uncommonly gifted caregiver, she was infinitely patient and had a deeply intuitive capacity for comfort and compassion, always knowing what someone needed before they knew it themselves.

In keeping with her wishes, the family will not have a memorial service. Her ashes will be laid to rest in Reedy, W.Va.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the Salvation Army or the Vietnam Veterans of America (VVA).