Sunday, April 18, 2010

R.I.P - Helen



Helen, age 1, beloved chicken of the Coop Keeper, passed away suddenly yesterday evening. She leaves behind no relatives, but many friends and followers.

Helen, known for her infinite wisdom, sweet demeanor and pure heart, will be sorely missed by her owner, her coop companions and friends.

May we all take a great lesson to heart from the life of Helen the Chicken. Disabled from a gruesome raccoon attack, Helen faced her disabilities with grace and strength. She never gave up her mission of spreading love, tolerance, forgiveness and peace to every one she met. She always put others first and never complained.

The coop was a better place because of her.

A private service will be held in the coop this afternoon.
In lieu of flowers, and in honor of Helen, we ask that you show your condolences by loving your family a little extra today. We are sure that this is what Helen would have wanted.

Rest in peace sweet Helen.
This world was not your home.


56 comments:

  1. This breaks my heart. :-( She was such a gorgeous girl... a tough old broad. R.I.P. Helen my dear.

    Di
    The Blue Ridge Gal

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  2. In honor of Helen today we will spend a little time in the kitchen baking...some family time with the kids.
    RIP Helen

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  3. Helen was my favorite :( Sorry to hear this, Jayme. Hugs to you and the coop family she leaves behind. RIP brave, beautiful, & sweet Helen. -Tammy

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  4. Jayme, I am so sorry about your loss. You are like me and familiarize yourself with your critters and therefore, it hurts when you lose one. I have a million questions but I know now is not the time. She was a beautiful chicken and I know you will miss her. RIP Mz Helen! You will be missed.

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  5. Ohhhh I have tears in my eyes as I type this. I have followed Helen since she was in your house with diapers. What a loss. I am so sorry. May she RIP

    Ginger

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  6. Jayme,
    In honor of Helen, I just went back and re-read all of your posts about her - heartwarming! The only reason she lived so long was due to your first rate care and lavishing of love and affection. We do not get to determine the length of lives of our animals, but we can help to determine the quality and do the best that we can. You can be proud of all that you did for Helen. No one could have done more and you are an inspiration!

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  7. REST IN PEACE DEAR HELEN

    I AM SURE YOU WILL BE MISSED BY MANY

    YOU WILL BE LOVED IN CHICKEN HEAVEN

    MY SYMPATHY TO YOU DEAR JAYME

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  8. Oh sorry to hear Helen is gone... she will be missed...
    Blessings today
    Rebecca

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  9. Jamie, I'm so sorry to hear of Helen's passing, I always thought she was so beautiful that at times she didn't even look real! This is the hard part of loving animals, but they are still worth it!

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  10. I see we're both grieving...another "likeness" we share! She was such a beautiful lady!!

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  11. Oh Jayme,

    This breaks my heart...RIP Dear Helen.

    OMG maybe I am overly emotional, but my heart hurts. I wanted to see her sooooo bad.

    Sorry Jayme...how beautiful she is.

    You are right, we should all spend extra loving times with our families, our pets, friends, no one knows what can happen in a an instant to change our lives forever.

    You are an amazing human being, and I want everyone to know how much you have been there for me and how much I love and appreciate you.

    Everyone, this beautiful angel offered to bring me food and to see Aaron just to make me feel better. How lucky am I to have met her?

    Thank you dearest Jayme, you are one in a million.

    Love always,
    Mirjana

    I just wish that I didn't feel so sick so that I could have seen Helen..; (((.

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  12. So sorry you lost one of your brood; beloved Helen. Your coop keeping tales protagonist will be missed by all your readers.

    Your Friend,
    Deborah
    www.FairfieldHouseNJ.com

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  13. I'm so so sorry Jayme. I know you love your chickens very much and I'm sorry you had to say goodbye to Helen. Sending a big hug your way...

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  14. Oh Jayme. I am so sorry. Helen was my favorite of your chickens. We should get our baby chicks in about two weeks and I am going to name one of mine Helen in her chicken memory.

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  15. Jayme, I'm really sorry to hear about Helen's passing. Poor dear...she was so beautiful! Hugs coming your way because I know how much you will miss her.

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  16. NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

    Say it ain't so, Mart. Seriously - it's not right!

    I'll bet you're sad. And if my mom reads this today, it will have her all flustered, too.

    Helen, it was you who fully inspired my chicken dreams. May your legacy live on in coops across the nation.

    R.I.P.

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  17. Dear Jayme ~
    I am so sorry to hear of this news.
    Helen was wise beyond her year.
    I know she helped you through a few things and I, too had learned from her.
    Rest in Peace Sweet Helen. You will be missed.
    ~Andrea in NH

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  18. Jayme,
    such a loving tribute to sweet Helen, may she rest in peace. Julie

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  19. Jayme, this grieves me so. I have lost a beloved hen before and know how hard it is. Each one holds a special place in our hearts. They are truely our pets. Helen was a good chicken. R.I.P.

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  20. Sorry Jayme. What a huge loss. :( She is a beautiful chicken and you're a lovely soul for giving her the special life she had. Rest in Peace, dear Helen.

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  21. Sweet, sweet Helen. I'm so sorry to hear such sad news and for your loss Jayme. She will live on in all of our hearts. She taught us all a thing or two about love and life and living it with dignity. She will be missed.

    Hugs ~Andrea~

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  22. NOOO, Jayme! I can't believe it. Not sweet Helen! I'm sooo sorry. Frame that last pic please. For posterity.
    Brenda

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  23. So sorry for your loss! What a great post to honor Helen.
    Velvia

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  24. What a special girl Helen was. We followed you and Helen and all her challenges ... who could ever forget the experiment with the chicken diaper. It makes me smile just thinking about it.

    Hug your hens, sing to the ducks, and know that all of us are very sorry that sweet Helen is gone.
    Connie

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  25. Had to take a minute to go tell my hens what sweet girls they are, cause you never know. Here's to Helen!!

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  26. Amen . . . what a beautiful girl.

    Barb

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  27. Amen . . . what a beautiful girl.

    Barb

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  28. Poor Helen! She was a wise young bird.

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  29. I was so sad when I read this today. Helen was the most beautiful chicken I have ever seen. You gave her a wonderful life. I love your blog and enjoy living vicariously through it.

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  30. I'm so sorry for your loss. She was a beauty.

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  31. Sweet, sweet Helen, I love your kind face!

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  32. Oh Jayme, I'm sorry. I've lost nearly every turkey, chicken, goose and duck that I've loved. For a while, I thought I'd stop naming them, but I couldn't quit. I hand fed and cared for my BabyGirl biddy for 6 months after a dog attack left her with severe brain damage. They all have different personalities and some of them really do love you back.

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  33. Awww - so sorry for your loss! What a beautiful bird she was!

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  34. Please accept my condolences in the passing of your dear sweet Helen. She touched many with her courage and cheerful outlook, despite her disabilities. She leaves behind many memories for us to cherish...."Sister Helen" will remembered for her ministry, "Dear Helen" rivaled Dear Abby in the advice department and we'll never forget her introducing us to Depends for Poultry! RIP sweet Helen, I can picture you now with a halo all your own!

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  35. So sorry for your loss. We lost our most special hen a couple months ago. It was awful.

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  36. So sorry for your loss. We lost our most special hen a couple months ago. It was awful.

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  37. marytylermotorheadApril 19, 2010 at 9:46 AM

    She was a good egg. Rest in peace Helen.

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  38. Helen was blessed to belong to such a loving family. She lived a short but special life. Thinking of you.

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  39. Aww, poor old hen. I had a guinea hen who died suddenly from a black widow bite. It's very sad to go out one morning and find them laying there dead. My condolences.

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  40. I'm sorry Jayme. R.I.P. Helen.

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  41. RIP Helen, in your honour me and Janet me 3 1/2 year old sussex light made chicken curry this evening, and your great auntie maud was delicious :)

    x

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  42. I'm so sorry to hear of Helen's passing. We will all miss her wisdom and musings!
    Blessings,
    Lorilee

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  43. Jayme,
    I love that pic of her on your kitchen counter! I know she was a beautiful old soul.
    Hug you, Cheryl

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  44. So sorry to hear about Helen's passing. I am sure you will miss her we will surly miss hearing stories about her.

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  45. Poor Jayme! So sorry about Helen. The blog will not quite be the same without her plucky personality.

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  46. Oh, my heart just broke a little just now... Such a beautiful sweet girl - do you know why she passed away?

    I've cried rivers for my chickens. Damn things. Why do we get so attached??

    (( hugs ))

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  47. I hope the rooster didn't get her!

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  48. My condolences, Jayme. I am definitely going to spread a little extra love around my family today. RIP, Helen.

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  49. What a beautiful tribute. My deepest sympathy to you and the coop.
    kim

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  50. I am really sorry to read about the loss of Helen! I know how much it can hurt. The only loss I've had in the 3 yrs. of keeping chickens was my favorite silverlaced bantam cochin rooster, Dandy. And I cried and cried.
    Blessings on you and her fellow coop-mates.

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  51. Oh no!!! I had a dream about you and the girls last night, and now I know why :(

    I'm so sorry, I'm pretty much in disbelief and upset that I didn't see this sooner.....

    Hope you're ok.

    RIP beautiful Helen.

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  52. Jayme! I can't believe this. I'm so sorry that you've lost your feathery little speaker of all things wise. I'm very sad for you. What a shock this must have been. (Could it have been the rooster??? Perhaps being pursued was just too much for her heart.) I will observe a moment of silence for Dear Helen, and I know you will miss her dearly.

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  53. Sweet Helen. How very sad. I know you will miss her. I am loving my family in honor of her. My youngest brother had a heart attach and us sisters and brother are surrounding him by love.

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