Howard Evans

Howard Herbert Evans, age 95, of Backus, MN died Thursday, October 23, 2008 at Golden Living Center in Walker.
He was born July 3, 1913, son of Franklin Sciota and Wilma India (Howard) Evans in Ben Davis, Indiana. His love of cars began as he helped in the family gas station in Greenfield, Indiana, where he met his future wife. His family moved to LaGrange, Illinois where he graduated from high school. After receiving telephone permission from her mother, Howard married Bettina June Davis August 18, 1934. Betty was 16 and Howard was 21 years old. They were married 56 years.
He took many years of night school at Northwestern University to further his engineering career. He worked for Union Special Sewing Machine Company and completed the 4 year Tool and Die Apprenticeship, B. F. Gump Company and Frank D. Palmer Company installing packaging equipment. He completed his professional career as Vice-President of Sales and Engineering and General Manager for Commercial Cam and Machine Company in Chicago. While at Commercial Cam, Howard designed and developed state of the art right angle index drives for which Commercial Cam received a number of patents. These barrel cam drives are used in the packaging equipment industry today. He learned to fly and piloted company planes for business. After buying his own airplane in 1965, he flew for business and pleasure. An avid fisherman, he enjoyed annual Canadian trips with high school buddies and family.
He and Betty retired to Bemidji, Mn on 120 acres on Little Bass Lake in 1967. But retirement was not his cup of tea, so they bought a little neighborhood grocery where Howard sold groceries and pop and Betty added an antique store to the backroom. They moved to Cochiti Lake, New Mexico in 1980 for real retirement! In 1989, he and Betty moved to Marshall, Minnesota. After Betty's death in 1990, Howard remained in Marshall. Thoroughly enjoying woodworking, he built many wooden motorcycle rocking horses, hall trees, whirligigs, apple baskets, banana stands, etc. He was often accused of using a micrometer to measure the wood. Perfection was his middle name. He enjoyed the Senior Woodworkers who gathered each week at the Middle School in Marshall to build toys for charity donations.
June 2005, he moved with a daughter and son-in-law to a small lake near Backus, MN. He loved pontoon rides, bonfires and contact with his family and friends. Howard continued to work on small projects in the garage including a birch railing for the back door, and a ramp for his little poodle when she had trouble jumping on the deck. Even after moving into a nursing home, he repaired flower boxes, sharpened knives and edited any projects that were being worked upon around him.
He is survived by his 4 loving children, Dan F. Evans (Pat) of Boise, Idaho, DeeAnn Gibbons (Tom) of Ashland, Ohio, Meribeth Coltart (Phil) of Backus, Minnesota and Michael D. Evans of Bozeman, Montana, 15 grandchildren and 12 great grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his parents, wife and only brother, Albert.