Aunt Evie was my favorite relative on my mother’s side of the family. She was young and fun, and I loved her dearly.

Born Evelyn Ella HigginsonMethven on August 28, 1923, she was the youngest of three girls. Aunt Murieland my mother, Vera, were raised as good Victorian children—seen, but notheard. Evelyn was seven years younger than Muriel and six years younger than mymother. She belonged to a different generation.

Mom said they all spoiled her. She and Muriel treated herlike their very own living baby doll. And she was “cute as a button.” She had aheart-shaped face and big eyes, and charmed everyone.

She was also an independent spirit. She took part in sportsand had lots of friends.

When she was about five, the family moved from their home inEast Los Angeles to a new house in West Hollywood, then a part of Beverly Hills.At the time, many young people who would later become film and TV stars alsolived nearby, and Evelyn new quite a few of them.

Down the street lived the George family. One member of thefamily was of particular interest to Evelyn: Frank, the third of four sons.They dated throughout high school. Grandma always said she didn’t need to guesswhere Evelyn was. All she had to do was look down the street. Usually, Evelynwas draped over the front fender of a car looking down into the engine compartmentwhile Frank was working underneath. He was crazy about cars. And they loved todance!

Mom described how they would come home from a dance andEvelyn’s chin was raw from rubbing on Frank’s suit jacket. They danced thejitterbug and all the other popular dances of the day. He lifted her up and flippedher over his shoulder and then pulled her through his legs.

They were engaged the evening of my mother and father’swedding on October 27, 1942. Frank and Dad were both in the Army at the time.

They were married on August15, 1943.

She moved with Frank to Washington, DC, where his job wasteaching pilots to fly, using the LINCsimulator. Following his time in the service, they moved back to WestHollywood, and Frank opened his own garage. It was a lot of responsibility, buthe loved working on cars, and did so for the rest of his life.

On December 1, 1949, Evelyn gave birth to twins: Karen Annand Kathy Lee. By this time, they were living in the “little house,” an ADUbehind my grandparents’ home. My family had lived there until I was two yearsold. By this time, Grandpa had died, so Grandma liked having Frank and Evienearby.

Evelyn really appreciated the help with the twins as theyhad many allergies, both of them to different things. Karen was allergic to cow’smilk and had to drink goats’ milk. Not easy to find in those post-war days.

This was also the era when babies were put on feedingschedules. However, the twins were on different schedules: one was every three hoursand the other was every four hours. Evelyn was exhausted!

Frank was working very long hours in his business, so theyweren’t able to spend much time together. They met with their pastor forcounseling, and he suggested they plan a “date night” once a week where theycould spend some time away from the children and reconnect. Friday nightsbecame their special time, and they continued this practice for many years.

After my father died, when I was seven, my mother wasdetermined to raise us by herself with no help from anyone. This includedfamily. (My mother had an over-developed sense of pride.)

Evelyn and Frank did what they could to give my brother andme special attention Uncle Frank attended Indian Guide meetings with mybrother, and Aunt Evie spent time with me.

Christmas was a challenge. The three sisters agreed to givesmall gifts only to the kids and to their mother. They set a limit. I think itwas about two dollars each at the beginning for our gifts. Later, it may havegone to five. In those days, it was possible to buy toys for that amount.

When I was about ten, we arrived at Grandma’s for ChristmasDay. My eye was immediately attracted to a HUGE package. When I checked thetag, it had MY name on it! It was about 3 feet wide, two feet high, and twoinches deep. I couldn’t wait until after dinner when we could finally open ourgifts!

Inside was a Betty Crocker Junior Baking kit! It heldminiature cake pans, cookie cutters, a mixing bowl, spoon, measuring spoons,cookie sheet, plus several mixes for cookies, cakes, and icing. I heard mymother scold Evelyn about exceeding the limit, and my aunt told her she hadfound it on sale. I knew it was a lie, and so did Mom, but there was nothingshe could do about it.

I felt so loved, not because of the size of the gift or becauseAunt Evie had dared to stand up to my mother, but more because she understoodwho I was and knew this would be the perfect gift for me. I baked all themixes, but I kept the cooking items and used them for years. I still had themwhen I my own daughter was born, and she and I played with them. I think shemay still have them!

In the early 1950s, Evelyn and Frank moved to a new house inMonterey Park, California, just a couple of miles from our house in Alhambra.We spent a lot of time with them—especially after they put in a swimming pool.

When I was about twelve, I began babysitting for Aunt Evieand Uncle Frank. Because I knew so many of their neighbors, I also babysat fortheir kids.

Eventually, Evie and Frank hired me to sit with the girlsfor their Friday night “date nights.” Even then, I recognized this as a way togive me a little extra spending money, which my mother could not object to.

Aunt Evie picked me up on Friday afternoon and took me to theirhouse, where she had already prepared dinner for the girls and me. After theyleft, I fed the girls, and they watched TV until their bedtime, while I cleanedup the kitchen. Then I oversaw their baths and got them into bed.

Then, I had the TV to myself and could watch my favorite TVshows: 77 Sunset Strip and Hawaiian Eye. At home, I rarely got tochoose what I wanted to watch, so this was a real treat!

Then, I locked up the house and went to bed in their guestroom.

In the morning, Uncle Frank fixed breakfast, usuallypancakes. (They were his specialty.) From Aunt Evie, I learned to love themwith plain yogurt and fresh fruit. This is still my favorite way to eat them.

It was about this time that my relationship with Aunt Eviechanged from aunt and niece to friends. I used to tease her that she was my favoriteplaymate!

Uncle Frank’s job took him to San Mateo, so they moved therein the early ‘60s. The first Thanksgiving break following their move, mycousin, Eileen and I took the train up to visit them.

Aunt Evie was a phenomenal seamstress. She made all her ownclothes and for years, she made all of the girls’ as well. On this particulartrip, I took fabric and patterns to make Mom and me dresses. Aunt Evie taughtme how to make self-belts, and how to put in invisible zippers. These were twodresses Mom and I both wore until they fell apart, and we loved them.

After Larry and I were married, we went to visit them onceor twice each year. Larry was an engineer and was genuinely interested in thedetails of Frank’s work. He would listen to Frank’s stories and ask appropriatequestions. They got along very well. Evie and I frequently left them and wentshopping.

Before we arrived, Aunt Evie would find fun, new places tovisit with us. We also had some we all enjoyed and visited each trip. Spenger'sFresh Fish Grotto in Berkeley was a favorite as was the Alta Mira Hotel in Sausalitofor brunch. We especially loved Allied ArtsGuild in Menlo Park. They had a wonderful restaurant and lots of littleshops. I often bought Christmas gifts there. When Evie was a docent at Filoli, we visited several times. Once she gaveus a behind-the-scenes private tour.

We also went into the city (San Francisco) to sightsee, shop,and play. We spent time at Pier 39 and Ghiradelli Square, and Evie often foundfun new places to shop for bargains.

In 2011, Aunt Evie had a stroke. A couple of months later,we went to see her. I was amazed at how she managed. She had gotten along wellwith her physical therapy. The only real aftereffect of the stroke was herissue with speech. She was sharp as ever and knew what she wanted to say, butshe got frustrated at not being able to get the words out.

Their daughter, Karen, was concerned about her folks livingin their big house with many steps as they got older and began to have somephysical challenges She decided to ask them to move in with her so she couldcare for them. Before this could happen, however, Uncle Frank was hospitalized.He passed away on January 4, 2017. They had been married for 73 years.

Since the moving plans were already in place, Evelyn movedinto Karen’s house. The twins cleaned out the family home (a daunting task!)and rented it. Evelyn and Frank had purchased two other homes when they firstmoved to the Bay Area, and those provided rental income for their retirement.

A couple of years later, Karen’s daughter and son-in-lawmoved to Reno. Property was reasonable, so Karen sold her home in California andmoved to Reno, Nevada. Kathy was still working and living in California, butshe planned to follow her sister when she and her husband retired. They visitedoften.

In 2023, Aunt Evie turned 100 years old. Karen and Kathythrew her a great party to celebrate. Most of the family attended, as well as manyof her friends from California. She had a wonderful time and even got out onthe dance floor.

Kathy and her husband, Jay, moved to the Reno area not longafterward, so she was able to spend more time with her mother.

On November 5, 2024, Aunt Evie died after a shorthospitalization.

I am very grateful to Karen for her dedication and careduring Aunt Evie’s last few years. She was able to provide her a marvelousquality of life, and Aunt Evie truly enjoyed herself.

We were able to see her in June of 2024, and spent a coupleof days with her. We shared memories of her early life, and she laughed and we sharedpictures. I loved her for my entire life, and I am grateful for all the wonderfulcherish memories of her.

Here is the link to a video I put together in her memory: https://youtu.be/FFcOc25IDvg