Elva Mae (Evie) Hershberger Dyck died Sunday, April 7, 2013, at Schowalter Villa of Hesston.
Elva was born August 19, 1924. She was raised on a dairy farm near Zimmerdale, Evie's love and appreciation of the Kansas prairie inspired the creation of the Dyck Arboretum of the Plains in Hesston, which she and her husband, Harold P. Dyck, founded.
Survivors include: sons, Gary and Teresa Dyck, Frankston, Texas, and Tom and Regina Dyck, Hesston; daughters, Joycelyn Cooley, Newton, and Julia and Brad Roupp, Ashland, Oregon; sister, Marjorie England, Spokane, Washington; 11 grandchildren; 13 great-grandchildren. Evie was preceded in death by her husband, as well as her parents and 10 siblings.
A memorial service will be at 2 p.m. on Saturday, April 13, at the Prairie Pavilion, Dyck Arboretum of the Plains, Hesston. Friends and family are invited to stay after the service for refreshments and a time of sharing. Visitation with family present will be from 5 to 7 p.m. Friday, April 12, at the Schowalter Villa Chapel, Hesston. A private family burial service at Eastlawn Cemetery will precede the memorial service. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Dyck Arboretum of the Plains, in care of Miller-Ott Funeral Home, 107 S. Lancaster, P.O. Box 32, Hesston, KS 67062.
