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March 2004 Table of Contents
From My Heart To Yours
A Tribute to a Great Lady
By Jerry Evans, President, J&J Music
Many of you know by now that my mom, Grace Evans, went to be with the Lord on Tuesday, February 24, 2004, after several weeks in the hospital. She was 85 years old. She fell and broke her hip, necessitating hip replacement surgery. Even though the surgery was successful, dementia took over her life and she never left the hospital. These last few weeks of watching her slowly slip away were very difficult on the family and we can now rejoice that she is free of pain and in heaven with Jesus and my dad.
As we look back on her life, we have to agree that saying she was a colorful character would be a gross understatement. A friend told me that when he thought of her, he could only say that she had the personality of "Minnie Pearl" and that pretty well describes her. Many of you met her at our conferences when she came to help us with registration, check-in, and, the most important job to her, faxing your conference orders to the office. She loved to be around all of you.
We would like to share a couple of humorous stories about her that I think you'll enjoy:
For many years, she owned a florist. After Dad died, she was literally a basket case for at least a year. The shelves behind the work tables at the florist were filled with cans of floral spray paint and one can of hair spray which she used to keep her 'piled-high do' in place. Never one to be able to fix her own hair, she had just come back from the beauty shop and decided some additional spraying needed to take place. Reaching for her can of hair spray, she mistakenly picked up the purple floral paint and began spraying her gray hair a beautiful shade of purple!! She began crying and the rest of us began laughing. (We fixed it with a can of silver hair paint until she could get back to her hairdresser!)
She was deathly afraid of flying and my dad only got her in a plane twice in her life. Once was when Dad was on the Board of Directors for the evangelist Bill Glass and they had a crusade in Hawaii. She went with him but had a difficult time enjoying the islands or the crusade in anticipation of the trip home. The second was when our daughter was born. Dad made her fly to Tampa to see us and, again, she was physically ill the entire time thinking about having to get on the plane again. Her philosophy was, God said, "Lo, (emphasis on the LOW) I am with you!"
That was her interpretation of this scripture and no one was going to change her mind!
She was also a godly woman who prayed daily for her pastor, Rev. Bob Barr. (If Sheila is your rep, this is her husband) She made it a point not only to support and encourage Bob and Sheila but also to make sure her friends did as well.
She was a dynamite Sunday School teacher who studied furiously all week to present the gospel to her ladies. She had a large class because everyone wanted to be with her. On Saturday night, I've heard her call twenty ladies to make sure they would be in Sunday School the next day. She was all business and mater-of-fact and the conversation went something like this: "Lula, Grace Evans here. Are you coming to Sunday School tomorrow? OK, bye!" then on to the next person on the list. She could cover a lot of calls in a short period of time and get the job done!
We can't imagine our life without her in it, but we know she is now with the One she loved most and for whom she lived her life.
Thanks for your outpouring of support; you are loved very much by us!
Jerry and Jackie
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