Evelyn Nowak

Evelyn June (nee Iwinski) Nowak, 88, of Temperance, MI, passed on to her heavenly home on Sunday, August 11, 2019. She had been a longtime member of Our Lady of Mount Carmel Parish in Bono, OH. In 2014, after the death of her Woodward High School sweetheart and husband John Nowak, she moved to Temperance, MI to be closer to some of their children.

Evelyn was born June 21, 1931, in Toledo, OH to Andy and Olympia (nee Kina) Iwinski.

As a child living on Mulberry St. she loved it when the circus came to town and patrons would ask to park their cars in the empty lot next to her home; she’d charge them .10¢ and then use her earnings to buy ice-cream. After John and Evelyn were married at St. Adalbert Parish on Lagrange St. in 1951, they remained there and were active members for many years. Evelyn enjoyed her eight children, twenty-one grandchildren, and twenty-nine (almost!) great-grandchildren. She loved Tiger’s baseball, an occasional trip to the casino, watching television comedy reruns, making Best Ever cakes for parties, and eating a good Polish meal. A retired employee of Oregon City School District, Evelyn had a knack for making everyone laugh, students and coworkers alike. At OLMC Bono, Evelyn taught CCD classes, volunteered at the church’s annual festival, read Scripture (Reader) during church services, and was an extraordinary minister of Holy Communion. Amidst the many things she was involved in, she always put family first.

Evelyn is survived by her children, Michael (Kendra), Thomas (Linda), Marlene (Larry) Layton, Sharon (Tom) Dumit, Martin (Tina), Amy (Eric) Swierczek, Pamela Burson, Jeffrey Nowak, PhD; 19 grandchildren and 27 great-grandchildren. She is also survived by her sister Eleanor Makulinski and sister-in-law Emma Nowak. Preceding her in death are her parents, her sister Florence (Chester) Kowalski, and grandsons, Thomas James Nowak Jr and Adam Joseph Burson.

Family and friends may visit Friday, August 16, 2019 from 2:00 p.m. until 8:00 p.m. in the Urbanski’s Bedford Funeral Chapel 8300 Lewis Ave. Temperance, MI where a rosary service will be held at 7:30 p.m. The funeral mass will be celebrated on Saturday, August 17, 2019 at 11:00 a.m. in Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Catholic Church 8330  Lewis Ave. Temperance, MI where she will lie in state in the narthex after 10:00 a.m. Burial will follow in St. Ignatius Catholic Cemetery, Oregon, OH.

Memorial contributions may be made to Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Catholic Church, Temperance, MI  or Toledo, OH St. Vincent de Paul Society, for which she and her husband John were ardent volunteers in their quest to tangibly bring the love of Christ to those in need. In her own words, written long ago for her family to remember, she said, “Jesus is love. Talk to Him when you have a problem. Believe me—prayer works! We’re proud of all of you and love you all!”