Helen Faye Owen

                                  “A good friend is a blessing from God.”  1 Samuel 18: 3

 If you knew Helen Faye (Sissy) Owen then you know the great sorrow and emptiness felt by her family and friends upon her passing Monday, July 13, 2020 from the coronavirus. She was born on December 25, 1951 and raised in Nashville, Tennessee.  Arriving on Christmas Day, her 4-year-old brother, Randy, wanted to exchange her for a pony.

 Helen grew up in East Nashville and on softball fields “playing in the dirt” and watching her Hall of Fame father, Buck Owen, play fast pitch softball.  Quite an athlete herself, she could outrun, outhit, and outpitch her older brother at an early age.   As a 1970 graduate of her beloved Isaac Litton High School, she remained very active in their Alumni Association and faithful to the programs they support.  Helping the teachers at Litton Middle School and supporting the Backfield In Motion program for at risk youth in Nashville were dear to her heart.  And out of her closeness with this group of friends emerged another special group of girls named “The Litton Kittens”.  Get-togethers were and still are a monthly affair!  A lover of water and sand, her summers were spent at the beach with family and fishing for crappie at area lakes in Nashville with her mother and father.

In addition to her athletic ability, with her curly blonde hair piled on top of her head and her beautiful dimples, she was crowned “Little Miss Sunbeam” by the Sunbeam Bread Company of Nashville. She loved horses and riding in the downtown Christmas Parade was a big event in her young life.

 Along with sports Helen developed a love for music and became a lead singer in one of the first all-girls band.  She later joined another group and traveled all over the United States.  She continued to sing at local venues and birthday parties whenever she had an opportunity.  You might think you were listening to Aretha Franklin if you ever heard her sing!  After traveling with these bands, country music filled a big part of her life and she counted many of the Opry members as her friends.  She was indeed a lover of all music but especially Country Music.

 Helen retired from Nashville Metro Police Department as a 911 dispatcher after 32 years of service.  She mentored many young men and women within the department and helped thousands of people with a caring and compassionate heart.  She received several honors and enjoyed many close and lasting friendships over her years there.

 Helen was a member of Hermitage Hills Baptist Church where she rededicated her life to Christ.  She enjoyed the fellowship in the New Beginnings Sunday School Class and made many new friends at the church.

To her family she was called Sissy but to others it was “Miss Sissy” or “Aunt Sissy”.  Having no children of her own she happily shared her time with children of all ages, and they adored being with her.

Helen was preceded in death by her mother, Lavenia (Bena) Vester Owen and her father, William Thomas (Buck) Owen.  She is survived by her brother and sister-in-law, Randy and Barbara Owen of Shelbyville, Tennessee.  Due to the current coronavirus pandemic there will be no visitation, only a private graveside service for the family.  A Celebration of Life will be held at a later date.  Pallbearers for the family will be Clayton Clark, David Clark, Jack Clark, Taylor Clark, Biff Farrar, Thurston Farrar, Tyler Farrar, and Zach Farrar.

 In lieu of flowers donations may be made to the Isaac Litton Alumni Association, PO Box 752, Madison, TN 37116-0752, Shelbyville Community Soup Kitchen, c/o Shelbyville First United Methodist Church, 122 Public Square North, Shelbyville, TN 37160 or any charity of your choice in memory of Helen.

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