Bessie Marie Evans

Bessie Marie Evans, 92, Omak, Washington, passed away June 29, 2012 from complications related to a cancerous brain tumor. She was born September 27, 1919 in Springfield, Missouri, the daughter of Everett Marshall Berry and Lola Mae Kinslow Berry. Her father died when she was ten years old. She spent her early years in Missouri, moved to Washington with her family in 1935 and graduated from Snohomish High School, Snohomish, WA in 1938. She married Chester (Chet) Lloyd Evans on July 5th, 1938 in the Methodist Church in Snohomish. They moved to Omak, Washington in 1941 where they raised three children, Terrance (Terry/Butch) Lloyd Evans born in 1940, Sandra Lee Evans born in 1941 and Gary Alan Evans born in 1948. She helped Chet manage his auto repair business through the mid 1960s and was a volunteer at and member of the Omak Presbyterian Church during the 1950s, 60s and 70s. In the 1950s, she was a Campfire Girl leader and a Cub Scout den mother. Especially in the early 50s, she often joined Chet, a long time scoutmaster of Troop 60, on Boy Scout camping trips. In 1966 she began working for the Omak School district as a teacher’s aid. She took classes from Eastern Washington State College, Oregon State University, Gonzaga University and Central Washington College, receiving an Associate Arts degree in 1976 from Wenatchee Valley College, a Bachelor of Arts in Education degree in 1977 and a Masters of Education degree in 1981, both from Fort Wright College of the Holy Names (now Heritage University). Beginning in the mid 70s, she taught regular and honors English in both the middle school and high school at Omak. For many years she was a faculty advisor to the Academic Decathlon team and to the cheerleaders. A voracious reader, she passed on her love of poetry to many students and family members. She retired from teaching at the age of 70. She enjoyed yard work and had strong opinions on politics, faith, gender issues and civil rights. In memory of her husband of 69 years, she arranged a modest scholarship for graduates of Omak High School desiring post-secondary education or training, a tradition her family will continue. Bessie was preceded in death by her husband Chet Evans, her parents Everett and Lola Berry Vincent, stepfather George Vincent, brother Frances Eugene Berry, daughter-in-law Judith (Judy) Marie (Kirk) Evans and a great granddaughter, Danika Evans. She is survived by her son Terrance Lloyd Evans and his wife Gwendolyn (Gwen) Louise (Bigelow) Evans of Wenatchee, WA; her daughter Sandra Lee (Evans) Elser and her husband Thomas Leon Elser of Dryden, WA; her son Gary Alan Evans of Plano, TX; grandchildren Thomas Alan Elser and his wife Katherine (Kathy) Marie (Schellings) Elser of Issaquah; Deneen Marie (Elser) Mulvaney and her husband Carl Blake Mulvaney of Kittitas, WA; Gregory Dean Evans and his wife Meghan (Commins) Evans of Shelton, WA; Kelly Anne (Evans) Carroll of Wenatchee; Alana Marie Evans and her husband David Y Huang of Carlsbad, CA; David Kirk Evans and his wife Lisa Tanaka of Tokyo, Japan; Jana Bernice Evans and her fiancé Marco Rosichelli of Helena, MT; great grandchildren Jeffrey Micheal Styles, US Navy; Timothy Alan Mulvaney and Daniel Blake Mulvaney, Kittitas, WA; Griffin Nicholas Dittmar of Issaquah, WA; Devin Ray Carroll, Wenatchee, WA; Nicolo Alexander Evans, Austin, TX; Gwendolyn Elizabeth Evans, Shelton, WA; Scout Evans Huang, Carlsbad, CA; and Alan Yoshiyuki Tanaka Evans, Tokyo, Japan. If you have special remembrances, photos or comments you would like to share with the family, please do so at: http://www.paxmemoriam.com. In lieu of flowers, please consider contributions to the Cancer Prevention Coalition, University of Illinois at Chicago, School of Public Health, MC 922, 2121 West Taylor Street, Chicago, IL 60612; 312-996-2297 (www.preventcancer.com) or the Omak School District. Memorial services will be held on July 11 at Precht Harrison Nearents Chapel (2547 Elmway, Okanogan, WA) at 12 noon, followed by a reception at 2 PM at the Breadline Café (102 N. Ash Street, Omak, WA). Please express your thoughts and memories on the online guest book at jonesjonesbetts.com. Arrangements made by Jones & Jones~Betts Funeral Home.

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Bessie Marie Evans

September 27, 1919 - June 29, 2012