A devoted wife, loving mother and steadfast friend, Michele Regetz Helmuth passed away peacefully surrounded by her family on March 9 ^th .

She relentlessly battled cancer for over 11 years yet never failed to be an uplifting spirit and support for others.

Born August 28 ^th , 1946 in Wilmington DE. she met Doug in Woodlawn, MD., they married in 1973, moved to Virginia in 1976, and subsequently to California in 1980.  Michele's caring nature and love for children was evident in her nurturing guidance of Kelly and Ryan.  Her lasting gift for those in her extended community was her specialized experience helping others.

She embraced life with an infectious positive attitude.  Favorite activities included quality time with family and friends be it walking, hiking, playing tennis, dancing, board games, puzzles and traveling to new places.  She loved her close community of women friends and all their diverse adventures and heartfelt support for one another.

Michele's passion for medical care was always present in her professional career as well as her daily life.  An adult nurse practitioner with degrees from University of Delaware BSN '68, Emory MSN '71 and University of Maryland CANP '73; she was chosen for their first nurse practitioner program, then instructing those programs at UofM through '80, and later becoming an assistant professor at UCSF teaching for 9 more years.  She evolved to biomedical industry Occupational Health, research consulting for a medical start-up, serving on VA cooperative study (HOST) national trial Palo Alto, followed by her most demanding responsibility of VA Compensation & Pension, staying as long as her heath permitted.

Teaching was an experienced strength and passion of Michele's.  Her ability to expertly research and personably communicate her knowledge enabled advise to medical students, counseling for friends and families, plus collegial challenges to her excellent Oncology team throughout her treatments.

Michele will be dearly missed by her family and community, her passion for enjoying life and genuine concern for others will live on in everyone she touched. She is survived by her husband Doug, daughter Kelly, son Ryan, daughter in-law Lindsay, and sister Colleen Glass, as well as her vast community of friends.

A Celebration of Life will be held in May for friends and family.

Donations in her name may be made to the American Cancer Society