Helen Gandy O'Brien

Helen Gandy O'Brien passed peacefully Monday, August 24th in her home at the age of 92. A native of St. Petersburg, Helen was a natural born sailor who spent a rich childhood on the shores of Big Bayou. She was the daughter of the pioneering Gandy family who built the Plaza Theatre and Gandy Bridge during the 1920's boom time that shaped the peninsula's future. This family background may have instilled in her an interest in local history which she often shared in interviews and articles about old St. Pete. She spent many hours as a volunteer of the History Museum cataloging items in "The Bunker'', an affectionate term for the museums storage facility in the now defunct Maas Brothers parking garage downtown. Helen was a St. Petersburg High Devil Cheerleader and she enjoyed the company of her old high school friends on a regular basis. One of her yearbook entries from an admirer refers to her as a "vivacious & curvaceous cheerleader''. She was a member of the Stuart Society of the Museum of Fine Arts, the St. Petersburg Yacht Club, the Debutant Club as well as the Junior League where her favorite roll was to conduct hearing tests for children in the public schools. She married her brother's childhood friend, Ralph Bennett O'Brien after attending Ogontz College for Women and the University of Kentucky where she majored in art. Ralph and Helen enjoyed a long marriage and had three children. He preceded her in death in 1988 but she found enjoyment in her later years with friend and fellow dance partner, Charlie Cosby. Above all else, Helen was dedicated to her family whom she dearly loved and her pets. She is survived by her son Roby O'Brien and wife Candace Berner, her daughter Kim O'Brien and husband Robert Morey, all of St. Petersburg, Cynthia O'Brien of Saco, Maine, five grandchildren & three great grandchildren. In lieu of flowers donations may be sent to the Humane Society. Helen's memorial gathering will be at Anderson McQueen Funeral Home- 2201 Dr. MLK Street N., St. Petersburg to be held at Anderson- McQueen Friday, August 28, from 5-8pm.