Helen D. Brittingham

Helen Diane Brittingham, fondly called “Diane”, went home to be with her Lord and Savior on Saturday, March 14, 2015. She was the daughter of the late Grace V. Acree and step-daughter of the late Goldsborough Acree of Ridgely, Maryland. Diane was born on September 5, 1942 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where she spent most of her young years with her late Aunt Shirley and late Uncle Thomas Davis. She was educated in the public school system of Philadelphia. Although she was considered a “city girl”, she spent her summers with her family in Ridgely, Maryland. After high school, Diane worked for the Anchor Hocking Glass Corporation in Salem, New Jersey. During this time, she became the mother of two beautiful daughters. For a while, Diane and her two girls moved to Maryland. While in Maryland, she met and married James T. Brittingham, Jr. and later expanded to a family of five. The family moved back to Salem and Diane completed courses to become a Certified Nursing Assistant. She worked for 25 years at the Salem County Nursing Home. In 1998, she retired from the nursing home and in 2001 she and her daughter, Renee decided to move back to Maryland to be with family. Diane gave her life to Christ as a young adult beginning with a Pentecostal Church in Salem. She attended Union Baptist Temple Church in Bridgeton, New Jersey, where the Rev. Albert L. Morgan was the Pastor. When she no longer could travel to Bridgeton, she became a member of New Jerusalem AUMP Church in Claysville, New Jersey, just outside of Salem. Once she was settled in Easton, she started attending Union Baptist Church, where she soon became a member. Diane attended Union faithfully and became a member of the Missionaries until her health began to fail. Although her death was sudden and unexpected, she was ready to go home to be with her heavenly Father. Many times she would say, “I will be glad when God takes me home because I am so tired of being sick.” In addition to her parents, Diane was preceded in death by her husband, James T. Brittingham, Jr.; three brothers, Benjamin “Benny” Wilson, Curtis Acree, III and Leroy Johnson; one sister, Barbara Jean Jackson. She leaves to cherish her memory her father, Dallas Johnson, Sr. of Bridgeville, DE; three children: Renee Denise Hester of Easton, MD, Angela Gail Ervin of Marietta, GA and James Thomas Brittingham, III of Wichita, KS; four brothers, Donald Potts of Philadelphia, PA, Ronald Acree (Emily) of Middletown, DE, Dallas Johnson, Jr. (Barbara) of California and Terry Hammond of Bridgeville, DE; three sisters, Phyllis Hubbard (Robert) of Easton, MD, Shirley Acree of Middletown, DE and Dorcilla Jean-Francois of Bridgeville, DE; six grandchildren; two great- grandchildren; two great-aunts, Carrie Sampson of Federalsburg, MD and Frances Williams of Pennsauken, NJ; and a host of nieces, nephews, great-nieces, great-nephews, cousins and special friends. To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Helen D. Brittingham, please visit our Heartfelt Sympathies Store.

Helen D. Brittingham

September 5, 1942 - March 14, 2015