Helena Rebecca Hellwig Pouch (March 4, 1874 – November 26, 1960) was an American female tennis player and served as the 18th President General of the

Daughters of the American Revolution The Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) is a lineage-based membership service organization for women who are directly descended from a person involved in the United States' efforts towards independence. A non-profit group, they promote ...

Personal life

Helena was born in New York City, the daughter of Morris and Helen Hellwig. She married William "Billy" H. Pouch on 8 November 1897 in

Kings, New York Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

. Pouch was the son of Alfred J Pouch and chairman of the Concrete Steel Company. Helena died in New York City at the age of 86. Together, Helena and William had one daughter, Helen Pouch, who died in January 1919 at the age of 18.

Tennis career

Hellwig won the 1894 U.S. National Championships singles title defeating reigning champion

Aline Terry Aline Terry was an American tennis player active at the end of the 19th century. She was born in Princeton, New Jersey. Terry won both the singles and the doubles title in the 1893 U.S. National Championships (now called the US Open) In the s ...

in five sets. Together with compatriot

Juliette Atkinson Juliette Paxton Atkinson Buxton (née Atkinson; April 15, 1873 – January 12, 1944) was an American tennis player. She was born in Rahway, New Jersey, United States. Biography Atkinson was the daughter of a Brooklyn, New York physician. She won ...

she won the 1894 and 1895 doubles title. She lost her singles title to Juliette Atkinson who beat her in straight sets in the 1895 challenge round.

Grand Slam finals

Singles (1 title)

Doubles (2 runner-ups)

DAR membership

Pouch was elected the 18th DAR President General in 1941, having previously joined the Richmond County Chapter in

Staten Island, NY Staten Island ( ) is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Richmond County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located in the city's southwest portion, the borough is separated from New Jersey by the Arthur Kill and the Kill Van Kull a ...

in 1916. She served as Chapter Regent (1926–1929), New York State Chairman of Better Films, National Vice Chairman of the Northern Division (1929–1931), Vice President General (1931–1934), and Organizing Secretary General (1935–1938). Additionally, she was elected Senior National President of the National Society of the Children of the American Revolution in 1937.

President General Administration

Elected

DAR President General The Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) is a lineage-based membership service organization for women who are directly descended from a person involved in the United States' efforts towards independence. A non-profit group, they promote ...

in 1941, Pouch's administration coincided with

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, and all of her projects addressed the war effort. She encouraged members to comply with and support wartime rationing and to volunteer with the

American Red Cross The American Red Cross (ARC), also known as the American National Red Cross, is a non-profit humanitarian organization that provides emergency assistance, disaster relief, and disaster preparedness education in the United States. It is the des ...

. Younger members were asked to consider enlisting in the Women's Army Auxiliary Corps or

Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service Waves most often refers to: *Waves, oscillations accompanied by a transfer of energy that travel through space or mass. *Wind waves, surface waves that occur on the free surface of bodies of water. Waves may also refer to: Music * Waves (band ...

, and Pouch supported these branches by visiting their training camps. The DAR's Headquarters in Washington, D.C.,

Memorial Continental Hall The Memorial Continental Hall in Washington, D.C. is the national headquarters of the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR). It is located at 1776 D Street NW, sharing a city block with the DAR's later-built Administration Building, and Con ...

and

DAR Constitution Hall DAR Constitution Hall is a concert hall located at 1776 D Street NW, near the White House in Washington, D.C. It was built in 1929 by the Daughters of the American Revolution to house its annual convention when membership delegations outgrew Me ...

, were offered as workspace to the American Red Cross, the WAAC, the WAVES,

Pan American Sanitary Bureau The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) is an international public health agency working to improve the health and living standards of the people of the Americas. It is part of the United Nations system, serving as the Regional Office for ...

, and other organizations. In order to show their "earnestness to assist

heir Inheritance is the practice of receiving private property, titles, debts, entitlements, privileges, rights, and obligations upon the death of an individual. The rules of inheritance differ among societies and have changed over time. Offic ...

Government in united war effort," all three Continental Congresses during the Pouch Administration were relocated. Pouch stated that "when it became apparent that our presence in what is now the war capital of the world would further complicate the terrific congestion already existing there, it was decided that our cooperation in this crisis was necessary." In 1942 the 51st Continental Congress, nicknamed the "Victory Congress," was held at the Stevens Hotel in

Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, in 1943 the 52nd Continental Congress was relocated to

Cincinnati, Ohio Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line w ...

, and in 1944 the 53rd Continental Congress was held in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. The 1945 Continental Congress, held during the Talmadge administration, was canceled due to ongoing rationing and restrictions.

Helen Pouch Memorial Fund

Pouch was the first National Chair of Junior Membership Committee, which promotes the recruitment of DAR members under the age of 36. Through this chairmanship, Pouch became a favorite of Junior Members who referred to her as "Aunt Helen." In memory of Pouch's only child, Helen, who died in 1919 at the age of 18, Juniors in Chicago proposed the creation of the Helen Pouch Memorial Fund (HPMF). This fund primarily supports the DAR's mission of education through financial donations to approve
DAR Schools
In its first year, efforts funded three $100 scholarships and in 2018 the Fund provided more than $200,000 to DAR Schools. Funds are raised through direct donations to the Friends of DAR Schools Fund, including the Sustaining Supporter program, DAR merchandise sales at the Junior Shoppes, and Classroom Grant Awards Program. The symbol of the HPMF is the Kangaroo.

Other associations

* Girl Scout Council of Greater New York *

Staten Island Historical Society Staten Island Historical Society is an organization devoted to the history of Staten Island and its neighboring communities, from the colonial period to the present day. The Society operates and interpreting Historic Richmond Town, the largest and ...

United States Tennis Association The United States Tennis Association (USTA) is the national governing body for tennis in the United States. A not-for-profit organization with more than 700,000 members, it invests 100% of its proceeds to promote and develop the growth of tennis, ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hellwig Pouch, Helena R Daughters of the American Revolution people 19th-century American people 19th-century female tennis players American female tennis players United States National champions (tennis) 1874 births 1960 deaths Grand Slam (tennis) champions in women's singles Grand Slam (tennis) champions in women's doubles Tennis people from New York (state)