It is with deep sorrow that we announce the passing of Helen Elaine Gates, who departed this life on Monday, June 30, 2025, at the age of 84. She passed away peacefully in Valley Center Nursing Home in South Charleston.

Helen was born on November 9, 1940, in Charleston, WV, to Russell P. Gates, Sr. and Helen Lucille Riddle Gates.

She grew up in Dunbar, WV, and later became a member of the Mining Your History Foundation for many years. She also served on the board of directors and as assistant treasurer for more than a decade.  She was familiar to many for her work at Hoot Owl, the annual all-nighter at the Archives and History Library co-sponsored by MYHF.  Though an employee at the library, she put in many hours of her own time as a member of MYHF to prepare for the events.  She also was a longtime member of the Kanawha Valley Genealogical Society.  She spent many hours reading tombstones for the society's Spring Hill Cemetery volumes, and she then compiled and typed the first volume of Kanawha Valley cemeteries in the 1980s while serving as treasurer.

Helen will be lovingly remembered by her brother, Russell P. Gates II and his wife, Barbara Gates; her nephew, Eric Gates, his son Aland Gates, and his wife, Ximena Gates.  She is also survived by her closest friends, Debra Basham and Mary Johnson.

Thank you to all the staff at Valley Center Nursing Home who cared for her this past month.

A funeral service will be held at 11:00 a.m. Monday, July 7, 2025, at Keller Funeral Home, Dunbar with Pastor David Keeney officiating.  Burial will follow in Mt. Zion Cemetery in Reedy, WV.

Visitation will take place from 6:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m. on Sunday, July 6, 2025, at Keller Funeral Home, Dunbar.

www.kellerfuneralhome.net