Rhoda A Evans
February 23, 1925 ~ March 30, 2019 (age 94) 94 Years Old
Obituary
Rhoda Ann Keeton Evans, age 94, passed away March 30, 2019. She was born February 23, 1925 in Harrison, Arkansas, the daughter of James T. Keeton and Alpha E. Slagley Keeton Orr. She married her high school sweetheart, Robert E. Evans Jr., on August 20, 1941.
Shortly thereafter, they hitched a ride to Corpus Christi, Texas in a truck carrying potatoes. She went straight to work for the family business, Bob Evans Drive-Inn. She started out as a carhop, but soon enough was managing the entire restaurant. When her husband joined the coast guard during World War II, Rhoda gracefully took charge of their growing family despite having to move across the country yet again.
A few years after the war, they moved back to Arkansas where they purchased land and turned it into their very own farm. However, the Lord had other plans for them and they returned to Corpus Christi to settle for good. She had a total of five children, Robert, Mary Ann, Janis, Steven, and David. In 1961, when her oldest son went to college, she started working for Corpus Christi Independent School District as a lunch lady at Fraser Elementary and eventually became the manager. It was a job she was immensely proud of and one she stayed at until she retired in 1987.
Rhoda was a devoted wife and mother who kept her family clothed even when money was tight. She could turn fabric from an old dress into the latest style simply by looking at a picture in a catalog. It was a skill she continued to use to bless nearly everyone she knew, all the way down to her great grandchildren. She did not just make clothes. If you were a lucky kid, you may have even helped make your own sock monkey or cabbage patch style doll. You would be hard pressed to find even one grandchild who had not received at least one handmade gift from their “Mamaw.”
She loved to share stories of her life, and one she told often was of the time she saved her husband by lifting a Model T Ford that had fallen on him. She did not know how, but somehow, she mustered up the strength to lift that car off of him and saved his life. It was just another example of how strong and loving Rhoda Ann Evans was. She was truly the matriarch of the family and will be deeply missed by those she leaves behind.
Rhoda Ann Evans was preceded in death by her beloved husband Robert E. Evans Jr., son Robert E. Evans III, Great Granddaughter April Epps, and Great Granddaughter Zoey Rowin. She is survived by her four remaining children; Mary Ann Woodard, Janice Cavalli, Steven Evans and wife Cindra K Evans, David Keeton Evans, 21 grandchildren, 47 great grandchildren and 21 great great grandchildren.
A Visitation will be held from 7:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. on Friday, April 5, 2019 at Seaside Funeral Home. A Funeral Service will be held at 10:00 a.m. on Saturday, April 6, 2019 at Seaside Reid Chapel. Interment will follow at Seaside Memorial Park.
Shortly thereafter, they hitched a ride to Corpus Christi, Texas in a truck carrying potatoes. She went straight to work for the family business, Bob Evans Drive-Inn. She started out as a carhop, but soon enough was managing the entire restaurant. When her husband joined the coast guard during World War II, Rhoda gracefully took charge of their growing family despite having to move across the country yet again.
A few years after the war, they moved back to Arkansas where they purchased land and turned it into their very own farm. However, the Lord had other plans for them and they returned to Corpus Christi to settle for good. She had a total of five children, Robert, Mary Ann, Janis, Steven, and David. In 1961, when her oldest son went to college, she started working for Corpus Christi Independent School District as a lunch lady at Fraser Elementary and eventually became the manager. It was a job she was immensely proud of and one she stayed at until she retired in 1987.
Rhoda was a devoted wife and mother who kept her family clothed even when money was tight. She could turn fabric from an old dress into the latest style simply by looking at a picture in a catalog. It was a skill she continued to use to bless nearly everyone she knew, all the way down to her great grandchildren. She did not just make clothes. If you were a lucky kid, you may have even helped make your own sock monkey or cabbage patch style doll. You would be hard pressed to find even one grandchild who had not received at least one handmade gift from their “Mamaw.”
She loved to share stories of her life, and one she told often was of the time she saved her husband by lifting a Model T Ford that had fallen on him. She did not know how, but somehow, she mustered up the strength to lift that car off of him and saved his life. It was just another example of how strong and loving Rhoda Ann Evans was. She was truly the matriarch of the family and will be deeply missed by those she leaves behind.
Rhoda Ann Evans was preceded in death by her beloved husband Robert E. Evans Jr., son Robert E. Evans III, Great Granddaughter April Epps, and Great Granddaughter Zoey Rowin. She is survived by her four remaining children; Mary Ann Woodard, Janice Cavalli, Steven Evans and wife Cindra K Evans, David Keeton Evans, 21 grandchildren, 47 great grandchildren and 21 great great grandchildren.
A Visitation will be held from 7:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. on Friday, April 5, 2019 at Seaside Funeral Home. A Funeral Service will be held at 10:00 a.m. on Saturday, April 6, 2019 at Seaside Reid Chapel. Interment will follow at Seaside Memorial Park.
To send flowers to the family, please visit our floral store.
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