Evelyn Anne Twilley

TWILLEY, Evelyn Anne, 86, of Chester, passed away with courage and dignity December 8, 2020, after a nine-month journey with pancreatic cancer. Evelyn was preceded in death by her parents, Anthony Papachia and Evelyn Stevens. She is survived by her loving husband, Howard Miles Twilley, to whom she was happily married for 35 years on November 29, 2020. Family survivors include son, Todd Russell Yeatman; grandson Todd Russell Yeatman, Jr.; granddaughter, Cali Delamater; and Howard Twilley family members: Margaret Twilley (mother-in-law); Caroline Twilley Smith (sister-in-law); Jonathan Paul Twilley (brother-in-law); and Evelyn’s devoted furry felines, Marmalade and Valentine. Evelyn was born September 27, 1934 in Jersey City, New Jersey, and proudly raised by her devoted mother. She graduated from Dickinson High School, Jersey City, N.J. in 1952 and graduated from Montclair State Teachers College in 1956. With an English major and teaching degree, Evelyn set out to educate and inspire her students. She loved them all and took great pride in their achievements. She had a full and influential career having taught for 54 years in the New Jersey Public Schools System (9 yrs.); Virginia Public Schools System (5 yrs.); Branches Baptist Nursery School (3 yrs.); and at private schools: Gill School (10 yrs.) and St. Mary’s Catholic School (the last 27 years) before retiring in June 2012. While her primary role was teaching English, she also loved directing plays and talent shows. In addition to directing such events, she also enjoyed participating in them as well. She particularly enjoyed modeling in fashion shows and in public, because for Evelyn, every day was “bling and glitz”. After retiring, with her continued passion for teaching and compassion for others, it was a natural transition to volunteer her talents and knowledge to the Shepherd’s Center of Chesterfield and the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI Central Virginia). After completing NAMI CVA family support group training, she served as co-facilitator every other week at the Bon Air Baptist Church. Evelyn was an active supporter of Ray’s Friends of NAMI CVA, a group whose members live with mental health challenges. She would help take the group on social excursions to various museums, parks, movies, and holiday celebrations. Her volunteer work with the Shepherd’s Center of Chesterfield included serving on the Adventures-in-Learning committee and the development and instruction of classes to enrich the lives of seniors. Evelyn’s courses included: Brain Games, Creative Writing, Poetry, Memoirs, Book Club, and more recently, Exercise with Evelyn. Unfortunately, due to the Pandemic classes were cancelled. Evelyn was looking forward to returning to teach classes to improve Mind, Body, and Spirit again, but God had other plans. In March, she took ill and later was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. Evelyn’s hobbies kept her busy in retirement. An avid reader, Evelyn was often completing a book every 3 or 4 days. Her morning hours were spent reading the newspaper and doing word puzzles. Occasionally, Evelyn as a member of the musical group “Nostalgia” performed at local nursing homes and assisted living facilities. She blessed her husband, Howard, with a wonderful 35-year marriage that she lovingly shared with him before going with God. He will always have fond memories of their mutual love for volunteer work, travels, and the cultural arts. Evelyn will be greatly missed by her family, but her spirit will forever live within their hearts. Howard would like to thank his and Evelyn’s family and friends for their love and support throughout their lives and during her time of illness. He also wishes to express his appreciation to Capital Caring Health for providing compassionate support during his and Evelyn’s hours of need. As per Evelyn’s request, a memorial service will be privately held for family. The service will be live streamed at www.jtmorriss.com 2:00 p.m. Saturday, December 19, 2020. In lieu of flowers, please consider contributing to: Shepherd’s Center of Chesterfield, P.O. Drawer 170, 6800 Lucy Corr Boulevard, Chesterfield, VA 23832, www.shepcenter.org or to NAMI Central Virginia, P.O. Box 18086, Richmond, VA 23226, www.namicva.org or to the American Cancer Society. Condolences may be registered at www.jtmorriss.com .