Evelyn Ruch

Evelyn Frances Ruch, 85, of Bettendorf, died Saturday, December 8, 2012 at the Clarissa C. Cook Hospice House in Bettendorf.

Funeral Services celebrating her life will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Wednesday, December 12, 2012 at McGinnis-Chambers Funeral Home in Bettendorf. Burial will be in Davenport Memorial Park. Visitation will be from 4:00 p.m.  – 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday, December 11 ^th at the funeral home. Memorials may be made to CASI, Center for Active Seniors.

Born on March 4, 1927 in Springfield, MO, Evelyn was the daughter of Benjamin Burton and Mabel Gertrude (Waite) Blankenship.  She married William J. Taylor. He preceded her in death in 1973.  On December 7, 1974 in Davenport, she married Rev. Paul Ruch. He preceded her in death on December 13, 2001.

Evelyn worked at St. Luke’s Hospital and for the Bettendorf Community School District.  She was a member of West Side Assembly of God Church in Davenport and had gone to Jamaica and Puerto Rico for missionary work. Evelyn enjoyed cooking, baking, playing Yahtzee, paddle ball and going for walks.  She collected elephants, had many friends and cherished her time spent with her grandchildren.

Those left to honor her memory include her sons, Gerald (Alison) Taylor of Hillsboro, Oregon, Robert (Sue) Taylor of Sedona, Arizona, and Thomas Taylor of Davenport; her daughters, Karen (Mike) Gurke of Cedar Creek, Missouri, Janet (Jerry) Welvaert of Colorado Springs, Colorado and Cheryl Mumford of Bettendorf; eleven grandchildren, eleven great-grandchildren and two great-great grandchildren; two step-sons and two step-daughters; and one sister, Vivian West of Springfield, Missouri.

She was preceded in death by her parents; both husbands; one son, William; two brothers, Thomas and Russell; three sisters, Lois “Peachy,” Virginia and Dorothy.