Mildred "Millie" D. Evans

Mildred ‘Millie' D. Evans, Macon (1930-2015) "The best is yet to come." Mildred "Millie" Doris Evans - who lived and loved with grace and compassion, dying only after her exhausted body could no longer hold her fierce spirit -- has passed into the paradise she so justly earned through her faith and works as a devout Christian. She died April 29th at the age of 85. In the end she was at peace, but she valued every minute with her beloved family so much she did not go gentle into that good night. Forever feisty - particularly if there was some perceived injustice involving one of her four sons - she fought off a series of illnesses and injuries with an amazing resilience. Cancer, heart disease, a broken neck suffered in a car accident, the stabbing nerve pain of shingles -- she faced them all down with her faith and ferocious will. Among her favorite quotes written in her journal is one by Winston Churchill: "Never, never, never, give up." Another favorite line from the Sinatra classic reflected her unsinkable attitude about life and its adversities, "The best is yet to come." Born in Rome, GA, she grew up picking blackberries in the North Georgia mountains, listening to her grandmother tell ghost stories on the porch during summer nights, and babysitting to get enough money to go to the "singing cowboy" movies on Saturday. She was a tenacious basketball player in high school, excelling on defense and stealing the ball with an attitude that certainly belied the striking, dark-haired beauty that made her a regular presence on the homecoming court. She met her match though - and her soulmate - when a young U.S. Air Force airman named Emory Thomas Evans arrived at a dance in Marietta in the summer of 1948. They met briefly, but were with different groups of friends that night. Eye contact apparently did the trick. "I thought this Tommy was the best looking guy I had ever seen," she wrote in her journal. "He paid no attention to me -- I was puzzled. The next day he called me and asked me out." They were married early in 1949 and celebrated their 66th anniversary this year. Tom's first assignment was an Air Force base in Puerto Rico, and to get there Millie took her first plane ride and saw the ocean for the first time. Millie and Tom went on to an exciting life as an Air Force family, traveling the country and the world so much that their four sons were born in one U.S. territory and three states: Emory Thomas Evans Jr. (Puerto Rico), Gary David Evans, (Mobile, AL.), Scott Eric Evans (Orlando, FL) and Robert Edward Evans (Kansas City, MO.) Her sons, who all survive her, can certainly attest that there was always an empty chair or two at Millie's dinner table for any and all who happened by. She was a great cook and set a bountiful table, as there always seemed to be a gracious plenty of fishes and loaves and whatever else was needed for healthy sustenance after a thankful prayer. Thus it was no surprise when she founded SA "Straight A" Catering - at one time employing 25 people --providing lunches to Stratford Academy and other area schools while catering to various groups that once included the crew of a movie being filmed in Macon. Yet she recalled with laughter how she could barely cook when she and Tom first married. During a few lean days in Puerto Rico while they awaited Tom's first paycheck, Millie came up with her first great culinary achievement -- banana sandwiches with just the right touch of mayo. She later apprenticed under the watchful eye of her late mother-in-law Callie Morgan Evans, a classic southern cook if there ever was one. Millie had a remarkable life in many respects, from a girl of modest means in Rome, GA, to the matriarch of an Air Force family that traveled to Rome, Italy. A favorite memory was the time she and Tom danced the night away in a café of admiring Italians when Americans were very popular in post-war Europe. Trips to Italy with kids in tow were a summer ritual during a four-year stay at Ramstein Air Force Base in the early 1960s in Germany. It was a Camelot in the White House, Dick Van Dyke on the tube, and some English lads were starting to make a name for themselves playing night after night in Hamburg. Tom and Millie returned from Europe to their Georgia roots, finding a place near Tom's birthplace of Macon, a beautiful stretch of Tobesofkee Creek. They maintained that homestead as A.F. base assignments followed as far flung as Oregon and Montana. Millie later became an active member of Midway Baptist Church in Macon, joining her friend Ruth Yarbrough as they visited the homebound, the sick and infirm, carrying a message of love and faith to help others through difficult times. Though she felt called to visit the homebound, Ruth was somewhat uncomfortable with the idea at first and "had to have a talk with God," she recalls. "He sent me Millie," she says. "Here I was having grown up in Lizella and never left, and here was Millie who had traveled the world and never met a stranger." As she went through her own trials, Millie never lost her sense of gratitude for all she had been given in a life full of loving family, travel and adventure. Only someone with an attitude like Millie Evans could suffer a broken neck -- after another driver ran a stop sign and flipped her car - and say she was "lucky." On her front porch overlooking the rush of the creek - "the healing place," as she called it - she put a scarf around her neck brace and wrote this passage: "I'm learning to appreciate the days hurrying by, to be content and know that there are not many as lucky as I. See I was lucky when I broke my neck that it didn't paralyze me like Christopher Reeve. I'm learning to enjoy the quiet places, like my front porch with the water flowing ever so softly over the rocks. I'm learning to truly enjoy nature at its best. The beautiful blue and white herons peacefully fishing in the water, the squirrels chasing each other, putting on a show just for me. I'm learning to read one of the greatest books ever written, the Bible. I'm learning to take one day at a time. To enjoy each day and do something worthwhile. It may make a difference in someone's life. I'm learning to treasure each moment with my wonderful family. I'm learning that God gave me these beautiful sons for a reason, how special and unique each one is. I'm learning that grandchildren can be loved and be as close to me as my own children. I thank God for knowing just what I needed." Survivors in addition to her husband and sons include a sister, Glenda Miles; daughters in law Joanna Evans, Jenny Evans and Heather Evans; and grandchildren Erin, Callie, "little" Millie, Connor, "little" Callie, Dylan and Kate Evans. A celebration of Millie's life will be held at 2 p.m. Sunday May 3rd at Tobesofkee Creek. For directions and more information contact Hart's Mortuary at 478-746-4322.