Yungst was born in Tel Aviv, Israel, to Eva (née Faiman) and Henry; both were survivors of The Holocaust.
"[8] Yungst was a performer on stage and in films, television commercials and soap operas, appearing in Guiding Light and All My Children.
[11] She changed her name to Hela Young and became the New Jersey Lottery hostess in January 1977 on NJN drawing the nightly winning numbers.
She resided with her husband and daughter in Mountainside, New Jersey and died in 2002 due to cancer.
[13] The New Jersey Commission on Holocaust Education presents "The Hela Young Award" each year "to honor a person in recognition of outstanding work in the community for the improvement of human relations among diverse peoples and for the improvement of the human condition.