WHITE STONE—Antti Anselmi Helne, 90, of White Stone passed away on August 28, 2018. He was born on April 21, 1928, in Finnish Karelia, about 60 miles north of St. Petersburg.
When Finland lost East Karelia to Russia in the Winter War, Antti’s family was relocated to Central Finland. He joined the Finnish Army at a very young age and was in the Honor Guard for Field Marshall Mannerheim. Antti received the First Class Medal of the Order of the White Rose of Finland for his military service just last year.
He studied at the University of Helsinki and Helsinki School of Business and became president of a ladies dress factory after graduation. After it was sold, he pursued his dream of obtaining a business degree from an American University and spent four years studying at the University of Toronto while waiting for a U.S. Visa. When it arrived, he enrolled at UCLA and received his MBA with honors in 1965, the same year he met and married Mary Kimmel. After a brief time at Bank of America, he was hired by the World Bank in Washington, D.C.
From 1978 to 1982, Antti was loaned to IFAD, International Fund for International Development in Rome, Italy, by the bank to set up a loan administration department. In 1982, he and his family returned to Washington, where he continued with the bank. He retired from the World Bank due to a hearing disability after 21 years of service.
He received a real estate license and he and Mary moved to the Northern Neck in 1990 after which he worked in real estate. He greatly enjoyed boating, fishing, reading and walking his beloved dogs. In 2007 he was diagnosed with dementia.
He is survived by his wife, Mary Helne; children, Joe, Katie and Taru; as well as Katie’s husband, Josh and their two sons, Sam and Tim.
A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. Saturday, September 8, at Grace Episcopal Church, Kilmarnock.
Memorial contributions may be made to Hospice of Virginia, 1328 Tappahannock Boulevard, Tappahannock, VA 22560, Animal Welfare League, P.O. Box 975, White Stone, VA 22578; or Alzheimer’s Association, 4600 Cox Road, Suite 130, Glen Allen, VA 23060.
