Helen Kaiatt Sakakeeny passed away on October 26, 2019. She was born in 1923 to Samuel and Freda (Hattab) Kaiatt and was the youngest of four children: sister Lillian, and brothers Louis and Edward, all pre-deceased her. The family was part of a large Syrian community in Bayridge, Brooklyn, New York.

Helen worked as a typist in New York City and began her career at the GAO (U.S. Government Accountability Office) in 1950 after passing the civil service exam with a top score. She ultimately became operations manager of the district office, her job taking her up and down the East Coast and to Puerto Rico. She also traveled extensively with friends and family in the US and Europe.

Helen did not marry until age 64 when she met Matthew Sakakeeny, a widower from Winchester MA. The couple was married on New Year's Eve, 1987. The marriage came with entry into a large Syrian-American family (Matt was one of 9 siblings), including 3 adult step-children (Robert, Nancy Burns, and Linda Lubin). After Matt's death in 2005, Helen lived by herself in their condo in Lexington, Massachusetts until moving to her favorite place – Carleton-Willard Village – in 2008. She also leaves behind her beloved caretaker Rhonda Annese.

Services were private.