Helen M. Kruger-Abercrombie

Kruger-Abercrombie, Helen M.
Helen M. Kruger-Abercrombie, MFH, 82, of Corrales, New Mexico passed away on November 8, 2016, after a valiant fight with pancreatic cancer, surrounded by her family.  Born Helen Marie Reynolds, July 17, 1934 in Valmora NM, a small community, at that time, dedicated to the care of Tuberculous patients that traveled from all over the United States to find the healing, dry air of New Mexico.  Her mother, Mary Reynolds Rackley was a school teacher for more than 25 years in Watrous, NM near their family home where they lived with Helen’s Grandfather Charles Reynolds.  Charles ran the Reinken and Reynolds Mercantile servicing Fort Union and the areas surrounding Watrous over the years.   Helen’s father, Max Rackley, was a road engineer and built many of the New Mexico highways.  They retired in Santa Fe, New Mexico in 1970.

Helen attended the Loretto Academy in El Paso, Texas from kindergarten until her graduation in 1952.  Her aunt, Sister Terese Clare, was a nun with the Loretto order and arranged to have her and her sister, Joan Claire Dawson, attend the boarding school for girls to ensure an excellent education during a time when that level of education wasn’t always available in the rural areas of NM where she was born and lived.  Being raised and educated in a convent was always part of Helen and this brightly shown through in her strong Christianity, family values, grace and manners.  She and her sister returned to Watrous for summer frolicking with their brother Michael, whom remained in Watrous.  She could always be found on the back of a horse, careening across country near the confluence of the Sapello and the Mora Rivers.

Immediately following graduation, Helen worked for El Paso Natural Gas.  She married Dorman David in 1958 and had a daughter, Michelle, that same year.  In 1961, after relocating to Santa Fe to be with her parents, who were building roads there, at the time, Helen met and married Willard C. Kruger.  They had a daughter Kristin, in 1963.  

Willard C. Kruger was a prominent Architect in Santa Fe, he was best known for designing and developing the city of Los Alamos along with designing  the laboratories that housed the development of the Atomic Bomb, also known as the Manhattan Project, during World War II.  He is also known for the design of the New Mexico State Capital, as well as many other state, federal, commercial projects and university buildings during his 50 year career, when he passed in 1984.  

During their marriage, Helen embodied graciousness and quiet dignity.  She was welcoming to everyone, never met a stranger and thoroughly enjoyed entertaining.  Helen was able to foster her passion of horses. She helped run Tres Lagunas, a guest ranch the couple owned in the Pecos Wilderness.  While there, she lead endless trail rides in the Sange de Cristo Mountains known for its deep and narrow canyons, long and broad mesa tops, heavily forested slopes, and rugged ridges with peaks above timberline.  She loved introducing strangers to horses and the beautiful outdoors.  During those years she hosted guests from local New Mexicans, to State and National dignitaries and Hollywood actors, who found themselves filming in NM.  The couple was also very involved in Quarter Horse racing in New Mexico as Willard was involved in establishing the All American Futurity at Ruidoso Downs.  They raised and owned several Quarter Horse race horses over the years.  They also were involved with the development and running of Santa Fe Downs.  

In 1974, the couple relocated to Albuquerque, NM.  Helen was upset to leave Santa Fe and all of her horsey friends and their activities.  Although, she began riding on the ditch banks that lined their Albuquerque home’s back yard and quickly met more horse friends than ever.  She was introduced to Sandy and Bob Platts, who were the then Master’s of the Juan Tomas Hounds Hunt.  She began riding to the hounds twice a week, rain or shine.  Upon their decision to relocate to Colorado, the Platts appointed the enthusiastic Helen to be the Master of the Hounds in 1977, leaving only a few hounds behind.  For the next four decades, she made it her life work to develop a fox hound that would be able to successfully hunt in the arid countryside of New Mexico and introduce any other avid rider to come enjoy the sport she loved so much. She never took her role as Master for granted.  She tirelessly served the hunt and the hounds and fiercely protected the hunt country.  As soon as her grandson’s could safely ride across country, she happily had two more horses to haul with her early every Sunday morning.  Her dedication to the sport has not only trained generations of fox hunters but has forged many lifelong friendships.  She remained an integral part of Juan Tomas Hounds, and upon her death, she was the longest serving woman Master in the United Stated.

Along the way, at the request of her “riding” grandsons, Bobby and Michael, she was simultaneously dedicated their equestrian careers in Hunter/Jumpers.  She traveled endlessly, hauling them to every horse show possible and provided her expert advise with zeal.  If you didn’t ride, that was okay.  She encouraged all of her grandchildren in competitive sports and started every conversation with “Did you win?”  And those conversations were frequent as is was not uncommon for her to place daily calls to each of them.  

Helen remained a widow until 2015, when she met and married a friend from her old Northern New Mexico roots, David Abercrombie.  David remained in his hometown of Anton Chico for most of his life and became a well known cattle rancher in New Mexico.  He was recently widowed and moved onto Angus Lane in Corrales where Helen had been residing since 1983.  The couple quickly caught up on old times and shared stories of old friends and their lives on the back of a horse either of chasing hounds or cattle.  They found themselves in each other’s company continually.   They were married on May, 8th 2015 until her death on November 8th, 2016.

Helen is survived by her husband, David Abercrombie.  Her daughter, Michelle Kruger Hall and her husband, Alan of Aurora, CO.  Her daughter Kristin Kruger Harbin and her husband Wayne of Lampasas, TX.  Her seven grandchildren, Josh Castillo, Nicholas Samuelson, Chris Hall, Ashley Hall, Bobby Ernst, Michael Ernst and Patrick Ernst. She is also survived by her brother Michael Reynolds and his wife Sheilah of Conway, SC and her brother-in-law Dale Dawson of Albuquerque, NM and several nieces and nephews. Helen was preceded in death by her sister, Joan Claire Dawson earlier in 2016.

Pancreatic cancer is now the third leading cause of cancer deaths in America, we are all aware that this year alone to include our beloved Helen Marie, that an estimated 53,000 Americans will be diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and more than 41,000 will die of it.
Please Wage Hope together, so we can absolutely change that!
We as a family would like to join PAN-AN.ORG/WAGEHOPE in the fight to double the pancreatic survival rate by 2020, your donations will include the newly introduced Precision Promise for medicine clinical trials and all areas of our mission.
In lieu of flowers please wage hope together and shine an even brighter spotlight on pancreatic cancer and donate any amount you can afford.  This will indeed better a future for others facing this dreadful disease.
Thank you,
The Family of Helen Marie Kruger - Abercrombie
Visitation will be held Thursday, December 8, 2016, 3:00 pm - 4:00 pm at  Daniels Family Funeral Services - Sara Chapel.  A Rosary will follow at 4:00pm. Service will be held on Friday, December 9, 2016, 10:00 am, at  San Ysidro Catholic Church at 5015 Corrales, NM 87048.  Interment be held on Saturday, December 10, 2016 at 11:00am at Vista Verde Memorial Park 4310 Sara Rd. Rio Rancho, NM 87124. To view information or leave a condolence please visit www.danielsfuneral.com  
Daniels Family Funeral Services
4310 Sara Road SE
Rio Rancho, NM 87124
892-9920