Although Helen Medovitch was small in stature, she proved to be a mighty mite during World War II. As an employee of the Dravo Corp., which at the time was building LSTs (Landing Ship, Tank) on Neville Island for the Navy, it was her job to crawl into the small-ammunition bunkers and do the wiring. Helen M. Zapotoczny Medovitch, of McKees Rocks, died on Tuesday, June 8, 2004, in the Good Samaritan House, Marshall. She was 86. "Mom was so thin that she was able to maneuver in small places," said her son, Joseph Medovitch. "The supervisors were too big to get into the bunker and trusted her to do the job. It was an important job, and Mom was proud to do it. "My mother, along with hundreds of Dravo employees, pitched in part of their pay to finance the construction of one of the LSTs. They were devastated when their LST was sunk by Japanese planes during the Battle of Leyte in the Pacific." Raised in McKees Rocks, Helen Zapotoczny was one of four children in the family of William and Mary Shemerdiak Zapotoczny, who emigrated from the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Her father, who was employed by the Pennsylvania Railroad, and other family members were instrumental in establishing St. Nicholas Russian Orthodox Church in McKees Rocks, where Mrs. Medovitch worshipped throughout her life. In the late 1930s, following graduation from McKees Rocks High School, where she played basketball, Mrs. Medovitch was married for a brief time. Her son, who is an air traffic controller for the Federal Aviation Administration, said his mother worked three jobs to raise him. "She'd leave the house at 7:30 in the morning and wouldn't be back until 6:30 that night. "Even when she was working at Dravo, she would work part time at a toy factory and as a waitress at the Eagles in McKees Rocks." Once the war was over and the LST program disbanded, Mrs. Medovitch was employed as a cashier for Kroger in the West End and at A&P in McKees Rocks. She retired in the late 1970s. "My mother had a great personality," said her son. "She was compassionate, cheerful and very giving. Her old customers from the supermarkets would often tell me that they would try and work their way into my mother's line when she was a cashier." In retirement, Mrs. Medovitch devoted much of her time to St. Nicholas Church. "When the church needed food for a certain event, Mom would do the purchasing. She knew from having worked in supermarkets where she could get the best prices," her son said. "And she was always available to help prepare the pierogies which the women from the church sold to support St. Nicholas." Mrs. Medovitch is survived by her son, Joseph Medovitch, of Pensacola, Fla.; a sister, Dorothy Zapotoczny, of McKees Rocks; and a sister-in-law, Mary Zapp, of McKee Rocks. Friends will be received from 2 to 4 and 7 to 9 p.m. today at the Valerian F. Szal Funeral Home Inc., 238 Helen St., McKees Rocks, where a Parastas will be held at 8 p.m. A Trisagion Service will be held at 9:30 a.m. Thursday at the funeral home, followed by a requiem service at 10 in St. Nicholas Russian Orthodox Church, McKees Rocks, with the Rev. Thomas Soroka officiating. Interment will follow in Mt. Calvary Cemetery, Kennedy.

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