Helen MacMurdo Posner

June 1, 2015, 3:48 pm 0 Edit

POSNER: Helen MacMurdo Posner, 88, of Longwood at Oakmont, passed away on Sunday, May 31, 2015. She was born on Aug. 21, 1926, in Pittsburgh to James T. and Bertha (Harkness) MacMurdo. Helen grew up in Pittsburgh; Lancaster, Pa.; Wilmington, Del.; and Blairsville, Pa., relocating as needed during the Depression in conjunction with her father’s employment as a signal maintainer for the Pennsylvania Railroad. Independent and confident at age 12, she navigated her way home to Blairsville from Philadelphia alone after a travel mix-up by reading train timetables. Upon graduation from Blairsville High School in 1944 she moved to Washington, D.C., to work in the FBI’s fingerprint division. After the war she was employed at Bethlehem Steel’s Rankin fabrication plant near Pittsburgh. In 1950 she met her future husband, Henry Posner Jr. at a YWCA event. They were married in 1953 in Pittsburgh while he was running the Baltimore division of his father’s business, Pittsburgh Outdoor Advertising. Their first years together involved many long commutes to Baltimore; the birth of their first child there in 1955; relocation back to Pittsburgh in 1956; and the birth of three more sons. They were happily married for 58 years. Helen was a humble, quiet person who found humor in most situations. She took pleasure in family life: as a loyal and dutiful daughter taking extraordinary care of her mother, aunt, and mother-in-law in their declining years; a dedicated mother to her four sons; a loving, supportive wife to her husband and his work; and an awesome grandmother to her grandchildren. In addition to family, she was the primary supporter of an inner city tennis organization that led to numerous college scholarships for disadvantaged teenagers and served as a volunteer in a number of educational settings including that of a reading tutor and a founder of the Pittsburgh Children’s Museum. She took care of herself by being good to others and demanded nothing in return. She had many friends and made no enemies. For fun she pursued her beloved sport of tennis and cared for her dogs. Her favorite memories were spending a month each summer on the shores of Cape Cod with her husband and four sons. She will be missed. Helen was preceded in death by her husband, Henry Posner Jr.; her parents, Bertha H. and James T. MacMurdo; her brother, Donald L. MacMurdo of Erie; her aunt and uncle Lucinda and Harry Neff; and her youngest son Robert. Helen is survived by her sons Henry Posner III (Anne M. Molloy) of Pittsburgh; James T. Posner of Kamuela, Hawaii; and Paul M. Posner of Austin, Texas; her grandchildren Eva, Matthew, Hannah, Ida, Agustin, and Victoria Posner; and great-grandson Jackson Lusher. Services were held at Rodef Shalom Congregation. Interment Homewood Cemetery. In lieu of flowers the family requests that memorial donations be made to the organization of their choice. Arrangements entrusted to Ralph Schugar Chapel, Inc. schugar.com.