Stiglish, Helen Mary

Helen Mary Stiglish (nee Pietrasko) was born on March 30, 1920 in Coleman Alberta and grew up in Athalmer-Invermere, British Columbia. Helen met her future husband Fabian Jack Stiglish in 1938. In 1940, Helen and her family relocated from Invermere to Surrey and Jack followed suit. The couple married on December 5, 1942.

In 1943, the couple bought a mushroom farm at 1050 Keswick Ave near the Lougheed Highway. The farm had been established by W.T. Money around 1928 and is thought to be one of the first mushroom farms in B.C. The farm consisted of 4 acres of land, with one and a half acres devoted to growing mushrooms. Mushrooms were sold by the pound under the name “Money’s Mushrooms,” and mushroom manure was sold by the sack.

Jack and Helen were entrepreneurs throughout their lives. They briefly raised chincillas for their fur, owned a brick business, and owned the 4 Acre Trailer Court at 675 Lougheed Highway from the 1950s until 1979 when the trailer court was sold to Walter and Dennis Hohn.
The couple built their dream home at 703 Edgar Avenue in 1969. Jack and Helen were avid square dancers and were enthusiastic members of the Vancouver Heights Square Dance Club in Burnaby.

Helen was an accomplished homemaker. Her passions were crafting, gardening, oil painting, and experimenting with new recipes for all of the mushrooms that came from the family farm. Jack and Helen spent their summers at a summer home in Whatcom Meadows in Washington State. Helen passed away on July 3, 2009 in Burnaby.

Rules for Archival Description (Revised Version – July 2008)
ISAAR (CPF): International Standard Archival Authority Record for Corporate Bodies, Persons and Families (2nd edition - September 2011)

Created 26-03-2020
Updated 26-03-2021

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Biographical details provided to the Coquitlam Heritage Society by Diane Stiglish