~By Robbie Snow

Betty Evans

Betty Evans has been the receipts treasurer at Knox for the past two and a half decades. Her facility with numbers is a living legend at Knox. This sharp intellect is also what brought her to the attention of the United States Marine Corps.

Sitting in Betty Evans home one warm afternoon, she talked about her life in Pittsburgh, PA where she was born in 1914. Betty was born into a Presbyterian family—mother, father, a sister, and a brother.

Pittsburgh is the setting for two of Betty’s most memorable adventures St. Patrick’s Day flood of 1936 and the Thomas Alva Edison Electric Light Anniversary in the early 1930s.

The flood caught us during a work day. I was working on Stanwix Street and the four-person elevator sputtered, but did get the four people in it to the ground floor. When I left the building, the water was up over the sidewalks, but I made it to the streetcar home. You could see boats up and down Penn Avenue for three days, she recalled.

The Thomas Alva Edison Electric Light Anniversary was another remarkable event in Pittsburgh. The organizers requested every light in Pittsburgh turned on buildings, homes, streetlights, signs, everything was lit. We went up to Mt. Lebanon where we could view the entire downtown area, including the Three Rivers. All the boats on the rivers were also lit up. It was one of the most spectacular views of the City.

Military service is a tradition in Betty’s family, her grandfather and great Uncle both served during the Civil War and an uncle served in World War I.

I had always been lucky at getting jobs. I took business school courses, and one day on a whim I walked into the Marine recruiting office in Pittsburgh, took an IQ test, and was told that my IQ was right on the mark for becoming a Marine, she laughed.

Although Pittsburgh was home, the Marines gave Betty the opportunity to travel and to leave home. She took basic training at Camp Lejuene, NC, near Wilmington. After basic training Betty was assigned to Marine Headquarters in Washington, D.C. where she worked in the fiscal division being transferred to different offices (she worked in the Commandants Office during the Korean War) as her services were needed.

She met Robert Evans in Washington when he was an usher at the Palace Theatre. He also worked for the government. He worked in the Commerce Department and the Atomic Energy Commission. Betty and Bob met after World War II, during the Korean War. The couple were married in September 1948 and lived in Washington. They moved to Arlington in 1950s and to the Knox neighborhood in early 1960s. That is when they joined Knox. Bob Evans died in 1976. Although the Evans never had any children, Betty has a large extended family of nieces and nephews (Barbara Trotti, for one) and dogs.

Betty Evans enjoys fiddling with numbers, gardening, reading mysteries (she is an avid member of the Knox Book Group and the Wednesday morning discussion groups). She has also been an active member of the New Comers Club. She enjoys going to plays and traveling. She collects plates and animal figurines. And she is computer savvy in the bargain.

Betty has been the Rebecca Circle coordinator for about 20 years.

Betty Evans keen intellect not only started her on a long career, but also has
kept her interested in the present. Open to new ideas and new relationships

~~Thanks to Robbie Snow for the above interview.
Robbie will be reporting each month of the life of one of our Knox women.