Mary Lou Evans

Mary Lou Evans, 93, of Carmel, Indiana, passed away on August 14, 2020, at home surrounded by her family.  The cause of death was leukemia.  In the weeks preceding her passing, she had enjoyed daily phone calls from friends, and nightly dinners with her family.  She left this world in peace, grateful for the chance to say goodbye to the people she loved most.

She was born Mary Lou Douglass on April 30, 1927, in Lynch, Nebraska, to George and Naomi (Ira) Douglass.  She was delivered into life by the town doctor, Guy B. Ira, who also happened to be her grandfather.  Her family moved to Indianapolis when she was a child, and she graduated from IPS School 70 and Shortridge High School.  Mary Lou was a figure skater, played the piano and violin, and was Second Chair Violin in the school orchestra.  She attended Purdue University, and later worked at the Indiana Chamber of Commerce.  She met Cecil Evans, of Salem, IN, on a blind date, and they were married on Thanksgiving Day 1949 at North United Methodist Church in Indianapolis.  They enjoyed 66 years of marriage before Cecil’s death in 2015.

Mary Lou and Cecil were the parents of three children:  Gordon, Karen, and Sandra (Sandy).  They moved to Carmel in 1957, and were members of Orchard Park Presbyterian Church and Woodland Country Club.  Mary Lou was an accomplished cook, gardener, seamstress, and financial investor.  She was a member of Tri Kappa, and volunteered at the Opportunity School in Noblesville, Fletcher Place Service League, Central State Hospital, and the Girl Scouts.

Mary Lou was truly a lifelong learner.  She read the Wall Street Journal daily and watched 60 Minutes every Sunday.  If a newspaper article reminded her of someone she knew, she clipped the article and mailed it to them with a handwritten note.  She encouraged and supported her children and grandchildren in their respective educations.  And in 1982, at the age of 55, she graduated with Honors from Purdue University-IUPUI with the degree she had begun over 35 years prior.

Mary Lou was preceded in death by her husband Cecil, her daughter Sandy, and her brother George.  She is survived by her son Gordon Evans (wife Sheila), daughter Karen Horn (husband Chuck), son-in-law Daniel Landwerlen (widower of Sandy);  grandchildren Lindsey Evans, Whitney Gauen (husband Asa), Evan Horn, Sarah Elizabeth Horn, Emma Landwerlen, Jacob Landwerlen, Zane Landwerlen; and great-grandchildren Miles Gauen and Iris Gauen.  Her two sisters, Jean Allread and Virginia Sumner, and one sister-in-law, Jeanie Douglass, also survive.

Services will be held at Orchard Park Presbyterian Church at 1605 E. 106th St. Indianapolis, on Saturday August 29th, with an outdoor visitation at 10 am, followed by funeral service in the sanctuary at 11 am.  Graveside interment will follow at Carmel Cemetery.  We kindly request that all guests wear masks and socially distance at all times.  In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions can be made to Orchard Park Presbyterian Church.

The Memorial Service may be viewed at the link below.

https://youtu.be/ksR9B9zDO4g