Helen Frances Muscorella

Helen Frances Muscorella, an exceptional woman, passed away on June 23, 2021 at the age of 97 in Saint Johns, Florida. Born in Manhattan, Kansas to Clyde and Frances Dilley, she was one of five siblings. She was born during the Great Depression of the 1920’s and lived through the Dust Bowl drought of the 1930’s when people had to wear damp face masks in order to breathe. As she was growing up in Kansas, her family rented rooms to U.S. Servicemen. It was there she met her husband to-be, Joe Muscorella, who was one of their tenants. Joe and Helen soon married. Joe, being in the Army, was shipped overseas to fight in the Battle of the Bulge in 1944. Their daughter Josephine was born there in Kansas while Joe was away in the Army. After the war ended, the family moved to Miami, Florida where their son Joseph was born and where she spent the majority of her adult life. Helen became Chief Operations Supervisor of the Miami-Dade Circuit Court. Upon her and Joe’s retirement, they moved to Cleveland, South Carolina and built their dream retirement home. After Joe’s passing in 1995, Helen moved back to Green Cove Springs, Florida and then to St. Johns to be close to her children. Helen was an active and talented woman. Over the years, she bred and showed champion Doberman Pinschers, designed and crafted gold jewelry, painted numerous paintings, farmed countless vegetable gardens, raised chicken and ducks as pets and enjoyed their lives in the hills just below the Smokey Mountains. Most of all, Helen loved her family. She was the driving force for many fishing and camping trips, created wondrous family Christmases, baked delicious pies and often stayed up all night sewing prom and wedding dresses. Helen was fiercely proud of her self-reliance. At the age of 97, she still lived independently in her own home in St. Johns and continued to paint and garden. More than anything, Helen was a loving and devoted mother and grandmother and she will be deeply missed. Helen is survived by son; Joseph (Dianne) Muscorella II of St. Johns, Florida; daughter Josephine Herron of Royal Palm Beach, Florida ; grandchildren, Christine Herron, Jennifer (Chris) Roper and Joseph Muscorella III, and great-grandchildren, Zoey, Hailey, and Alexander Roper and Calista Herron. In addition to her husband Joseph, she was preceded in death by her parents; brothers, Clyde and William, and two sisters, Patricia and Mary. A celebration of Helen’s life will be held at 1 pm on Saturday, July 17, 2021 at Cross Creek Church, 401 Greenbriar Road, St. Johns, Florida 32259. Those unable to attend can view the service live streamed at: https://www.facebook.com/crosscreekchurch.jax/. Interment at Arlington National Cemetery, VA will take place at a later date. St. Johns Family Funeral Home is in charge of those arrangements.

Helen Frances Muscorella

October 23, 1923 - June 23, 2021