During during a speech at a bankers' convention in Dayton, Ohio, Helen met her future husband, Franklin Rice, the Vice President of Dayton Savings & Trust. They were married on January 30, 1929 in New York City. The couple settled in Dayton. In October 1929, Helen & Franklin lost everything in the Stock Market crash that started the Great Depression. In 1932, Franklin Rice committed suicide. Meanwhile, Helen took a full-time position with Gibson Art Company of Cincinnati. When the editor of the Gibson greeting card lines died suddenly, Helen took over for her.