Evelyn Louise (Kitchen) Ferguson

1940 - 2022

Evelyn Louise (Kitchen) Ferguson passed away unexpectedly on February 17, 2022, while vacationing in Florida.

She is preceded in death by parents Joseph and Mary Louise (Moots) Kitchen.

Evelyn is survived by her husband of 61 years, James Ferguson; daughter, Nanci Ferguson; son, David (Kelly) Ferguson; granddaughters, Samantha (Travis) Murray; Kelsey (Joshua) Abbott; Delaney (Drew Nichols) Ferguson; great-grandchildren Matthew David Murray, James Daniel Murray, and Topanga Joy Abbott; sister Marilyn (Dave) Halteman; brother, Joseph (Dorothy) Kitchen; many nieces, nephews, cousins, and dear friends.

Evelyn was born and raised in Dayton, Ohio, where she graduated from Fairview High School. She attended The University of Cincinnati Teacher’s College and joined the Kappa Alpha Theta sorority. In 1960, Jim and Evelyn married after being sweethearts for 5 years, having met at Fairview during his senior year. Work soon took them to Pennsylvania. Shortly after the move to the Philadelphia area, they decided to buy a home out in the country. They had great fun looking for their first home and eventually found a twelve acre place with lots of barns and a nice house. They quickly acquired horses, chickens, turkeys, ducks, lambs, dogs, cats and eventually their first child. Life was very different for two city kids, but they loved the open spaces. In May 1966, a job offer for Jim brought them back to Ohio and 5 weeks later they rounded out the family with the birth of their second child. In 1967, they bought the “house on the hill” on 8 acres in Jefferson Township and it was here they raised their family and continued their love of their rural lifestyle. 55 years later, it is still the center of family life and the go-to place for large gatherings and celebrations.

Evelyn was fiercely passionate about every aspect of her life, and when she committed to something, she always gave it her absolute best. She loved helping people and was incredibly generous with her time and talents.

One of the places where she so generously shared her time was with the Girl Scouts. Having been a scout herself, Evelyn gladly volunteered to be an assistant leader when her daughter joined Brownies in 1971. The following year, Evelyn stepped up and became troop leader. Under her leadership, Troop 1122 became one of the largest and most active troops in the council, known for its outdoor skills and many, many camping trips, and at its peak had over 30 girls. A core group of the troop stayed together through high school, but 1122’s graduation wasn’t the end of Evelyn’s involvement. She was also involved in training other leaders and co-authored a handbook on outdoor skills for troops. And when it was time for her granddaughters to join Scouting, she was there again, helping guide yet another generation of girls.

Evelyn and Jim became interested in sailing in the 1970’s and became members of Hoover Sailing Club in 1978, joining the Windmill Fleet. The club became a home away from home for the entire family. Evelyn and Jim were active in all aspects of club life, from racing to social to helping maintain the grounds and facilities. Evelyn won the club’s Sportswoman Award in 1980 and in 2008, Evelyn and Jim were honored for their service and dedication by being made Life Members.

Evelyn loved to travel, and Jim’s work gave them great opportunities to visit many amazing places in the US and Europe. Their favorite places included Yellowstone, the Alps, Greece, and Rome and Florence, Italy. One of Evelyn’s favorite places was Water Island in the US Virgin Islands, and this tropical paradise became their winter escape destination for many, many years.

In addition to her “job” caring for her husband, kids and home, Evelyn was Jim’s “right hand woman” at their business; worked for Jefferson Township; and was elected as Township Clerk in 1984, serving in that position for two years.

Evelyn was very involved with her Fairview High School class, helping plan reunions, luncheons, and other social gatherings. She also volunteered to take over the class database and worked tirelessly to keep the class contact information up to date. She created and mailed an annual newsletter so classmates could share stories and photos and she regularly emailed the class with important updates on members.

Evelyn very much enjoyed working on “projects”. From fixing things at her own home to helping with a whole house makeover for the kids or grandkids, she loved to work with her hands and loved to be busy. She even managed to find projects to do while on vacation! One of her biggest undertakings was the 1989 upgrade to her own home. She designed, oversaw the construction of and helped finish a major, multi-room addition that was created so Jim’s mother could move in with them and be with family in her final years.

When not busy doing things for others, Evelyn liked to spend time with Jim and the family, garden and work outside, feed and watch her beloved birds, read, socialize with folks at the sailing club, walk a beach on the quest for the perfect shell, spend time at the family vacation spot up north, play with her great grandchildren, and text or email with friends and family.

A gathering to celebrate Evelyn’s life will be held April 14, 2022 from 5pm to 8pm at Schoedinger Northeast, 1051 E. Johnstown Rd, Gahanna, Ohio. This will be a casual event and food and drink will be provided.

In lieu of flowers, contributions can be made to the Girl Scouts of Ohio’s Heartland. Please mail to: GSOH, Gift Processing, 1700 Watermark Dr., Columbus, OH 43215. Make checks payable to: ‘GSOH’ and include “Evelyn Ferguson” on the memo line.