White was born as Helen Douglas Abernathy in Fort Lawn, South Carolina, USA, on 21 September 1906. Her parents were William Leslie Abernathy (1876–1955) and Martha Mary Williams (1880–1966). She had at least four siblings.

White attended Erskine College for one year and then transferred to Flora McDonald College in Red Springs, North Carolina. She completed her degree in Home Economics there and accepted a teaching position at Centenary High School in Marion County in 1928. In Centenary, she met her future husband, Harry Alton White, Sr., whom she married on Christmas Day 1933.

Over the next 50 years, following her husband’s career, they lived several places in Georgia and North Carolina. The couple had a daughter, Jerri. They moved to Raleigh, North Carolina, and then to Griffin, Georgia, where their son Harry Jr. was born. After two years there, her husband accepted a promotion in Athens, Georgia, and the family lived there for nine years. During this time, she completed an advanced degree in education. The family then moved back to Raleigh and lived there for 22 years. During the time they lived in Raleigh, North Carolina, she taught at the Governor Morehead School (School for the Blind) for 16 years. There she pioneered the use of community people to help students learn how to do things that would prepare them for future independent living.

In 1978, the couple returned to Centenary. Her husband passed away in May 1984.

White passed away in Centenary, South Carolina, USA, on 16 October 2018, at the age of 112 years 25 days. She was survived by her two children, one grandson, and one great-grandson.

(Partially sourced from Gerontology Wiki)