Helen LaBuda adored dachshunds. She was the Indiana Representative for Midwest Dachshund Rescue in Tinley Park.
“She got involved (with the organization) in 2006,” said her daughter, Jennifer Davalos. LaBuda made it her mission to rescue dachshunds and find them loving homes. Something about the breed always captured her heart. “They’re quirky little dogs,” her daughter said. “Stubborn, funny, protective of their owners; she just adored them. She saw the good in every dog.”
LaBuda also adored the children she worked hard to raise, her friends and her family. A graduate of Highland High School, LaBuda earned a bachelor of science degree in chemistry from Purdue University in 1992. She worked for 25 years at the Chicago Emulsion Plant of Sherwin Williams Company. Her last position was as plant quality manager.
“She was a good manager, tough but fair,” her daughter said. “She wanted things done right. She made me very rule oriented; she said we have to follow the rules. This is the way it needs to be done.”
LaBuda had two children, Davalos and Christopher LaBuda. “She was a very hard worker,” Davalos said. “She worked and was going to school, raising two kids, had to go to multiple sporting events; she just never was relaxed, she was constantly on the go.”
She also had two grandsons, Kannon and Asher, whom she loved dearly, her daughter said. “She had the biggest heart. She would do anything for you. She was kind and giving.”
One of LaBuda’s passions was cooking. “My husband loves to eat, so they were a good pair,” Davalos said. LaBuda took Spanish lessons and traveled to Mexico with her favorite traveling buddy, her brother Richard Soudriette, several times.
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