Ida Mae Evans, 91, of Columbia, MO, formerly of Kearney, died Friday, October 6, 2023, at Lenoir Woods in Columbia.
Ida Mae Evans was born on December 31, 1931, in Chula, MO. She was the daughter of Henry Adolph Sayer and Edith Sayer. The family lived on a fifty-acre farm outside of Chula. Ida was raised on that farm and graduated from Wheeling High School in 1949.
Ida left the farm immediately upon graduating, and moved to Chillicothe where she worked a number of jobs before finding a passion for bookkeeping. She worked for the accountant TJ Frick and went to night classes at Chillicothe Business College. In 1954 she was introduced to Jim Evans, and they were married on July 27, 1956, with him preceding her in death on February 1, 2004. Jim took a job with Ford Motor Company at the Claycomo plant and Jim and Ida moved to an apartment in North Kansas City, where Ida took the bus to downtown Kansas City to work for the accounting firm Baird, Kurtz and Dobson.
In 1960, Jim and Ida had their first son Craig, and another son Mark followed in 1962. Ida quit working and dedicated her life to raising two boys. In 1969 the family moved to Kearney, MO, where both boys graduated from High School. After the boys left, Ida went back to work, first as a part-time bookkeeper, ultimately working her way up to controller at Finch Bayless Equipment Company in Kansas City, KS. She retired shortly after Jim retired from the Ford plant. In 2009 she moved to Columbia, MO, where she spent the rest of her life.
Ida was a woman of few words, but no one could get more done. She loved to bowl, play golf, garden and spend time with her family. She was a dedicated wife and mother, who always
sacrificed so that her children could pursue their dreams.
Ida is survived by her sons, Craig Evans (Dawn) and Mark Evans (Monica); grandchildren, Barrett, Aaron, Mary, Dillon, Austin and Natalie; and great-granddaughter, Bridget.
She was preceded in death by her parents; husband, Jim; sister, Pauline; and brothers, Robert, Joe and Donald.
Graveside services will be held at 11:00 a.m. Thursday, October 12, 2023, at Mt. Olivet Cemetery in Kearney with Rev. Rod Kelley officiating. There is no visitation.
In lieu of flowers, memorials are suggested to the charity of donor’s choice and an online guestbook is available at www.campbell-lewis.com.