Helen Millar was born January 14, 1922 in Billings, Montana to parents Lloyd and Mabel Berg Millar. She was the oldest of three children. She had two younger brothers William (Bill) and Robert (Bob) and was close to them and their families throughout their lives. Helen often told stories of growing up with them as a country girl. She recalled how she learned to drive a tractor on the farm, long before she was old enough to drive a car.
Helen met the love of her long life, Jesse Everett Hall, at the State Agricultural College where he was a sophomore in the engineering program and she was a young freshman from farm country in Gardner, North Dakota. They married on October 21, 1939 and their oldest son, Lyle Everett Hall, was born in 1940.
By January, 1942 they had settled in Burbank, California, where both worked for Lockheed Aircraft Company until June, 1944, when Jesse joined the U.S. Marine Corps. Helen was pregnant with their second son, William. William was born on November 12, 1944, while his father was sailing to Iwo Jima and Guam. After the war, Jesse earned his engineering degree and went to work for the city of Burbank and rose to Senior Mechanical Engineer for Burbank Water and Power.
Helen and Jesse had two more sons, James Lloyd Hall born in 1947 and Jerry Ralph Hall, born in 1948. William finished college and became the head engineer for the City of Glendale. Lyle, James, and Jerry became career firefighters for Los Angles City.
Jesse and Helen lived on Wyoming Avenue in Burbank from 1942 until 1966 and during that time, Helen worked for decades as a Banquet Waitress at the famous Smokehouse Restaurant near the movie studios in Burbank. Helen had a bubbly, charming personality and was very successful in her profession. She loved her job, her family, and her many friends. She was a generous person and consummate hostess. Helen enjoyed sharing good times at her home during frequent dinners on the weekends where brothers, cousins, in-laws, neighbors, and friends gathered to share laughter and enjoy her home cooked meals. During those times, Jesse would sit back quietly and smile as he watched her entertain.
Upon Jesse’s retirement, he and Helen became real estate agents, moving from home to home for more than a decade. Eventually, the couple purchased a second family home near the beach in Oxnard, California and divided their time between their home in Burbank and their beach home.
Sadly, Jesse died on August 9, 1991 from complications of Lou Gehrig’s Disease. After Jesse’s passing, Helen remained active with travel, friends, and family activities for several years prior to succumbing to the effects of dementia. She died peacefully in her bed at the age of 98. At the end, she was surrounded by loving family members. Her memory will live on through her four sons, 13 grandchildren, 18 great grandchildren, 9 great, great grandchildren and her many cousins, nieces and nephews.
Truly, a life well lived.
