Evelyn Atherton

Wednesday, October 11, 2017 1:45 pm

Evelyn Atherton, 99, of Decorah, died Monday, Oct. 2, 2017, at Mayo Clinic Hospital, St. Mary’s Campus in Rochester, Minn. Memorial services are at 2 p.m. Friday, Oct. 13, in the Fellowship Room at Decorah Lutheran Church, with Pastor Dave Sorenson and Pastor Brenda Crossfield officiating. Inurnment is in Lutheran Cemetery in Decorah. Fjelstul Funeral Home in Decorah is serving the family. Online condolences may be made at fjelstul.com. Organist is Linda Gjerdrum. Soloist is Linda Gjerdrum (“Den Store Hvide Flok”). Congregational hymns are “Softly and Tenderly” and “Children of the Heavenly Father.”

Evelyn Ruth (Evie) Atherton was born March 27, 1918, in Decorah, the daughter of Henry and Olga (Storlie) Rud. She was baptized and confirmed at Decorah Lutheran Church. She attended Decorah Schools and graduated from Decorah High School with the Class of 1935. After working for a year and a half, Evie went to the Norwegian American Hospital in Chicago, Ill. for three years of nurse’s training. There she attained her R.N. degree.

World War II broke out and Evie joined the Army/Air Force. She served two years each at Air Force bases in Fort Myers, Fla. and Harlingen, Texas. After the war, she returned to Chicago. On a whim, she and two nursing friends went to Hawaii to work. This is where she met her first husband, Donald Evans. Upon returning stateside they were married and lived in San Diego, Calif., so Don could complete his military service.

Their son Chad was born at the U.S. Naval Air Base in Coronado, Calif.

After Don’s discharge from the service, the family moved to Pocatello, Idaho, where Evie worked as a nurse for two and a half years. Evie and Don divorced so then she and Chad moved back to Decorah and she continued working as a nurse. She worked with Doctors Dahlquist, Swenson and Dolan. She then finished her nursing career in the Luther College Health Service.

When she was working for Dr. Dolan, she met and later married Waldo (Wally) Atherton. They enjoyed playing bridge, golfing and having friends over for parties.

Evie is survived by her son, Chad (Sandra) Evans of Decorah; two step-daughters, Margaret (Gary) Pint of Edina, Minn. and Lynn (Tom) Keene of Salt Lake City, Utah; her cousins: Linda Gjerdrum of Mable, Minn., Lois (Jim) Tollefsrud of Spring Grove, Minn. and Karen (Doug) Wolf of Verona, Wis.; her two grandchildren, Trevor (Maddy) Gossman of Lake Worth, Fla. and Shannon Duncan of Decorah; and two great-grandchildren, Sierra and Aria Duncan of Decorah.

She was preceded in death by her parents; her two husbands, Don Evans and Wally Atherton in 1994; an infant son Boyd Evans; her sister Eleanor Rud Aug. 15, 2017; a sister who died in infancy; and various cousins.